Candidates introduce political platforms to residents at Forum

By: Toni Walker

Editor of The Steel Country Bee

news@steelcountrybee.com

Numerous city and county officials turned up at the Morris County Annex on Feb. 11 for the Morris County Political Forum, hosted by the Daingerfield Chamber of Commerce and the Business and Professional Women’s Club. The Forum gave candidates the chance to pitch their Political platform to the local voters before the polls open for early voting on Feb. 16.

Moderator Chris Spencer began by welcoming everyone and leading those in attendance in a prayer and the pledge of allegiance. Spencer then introduced the city and county dignitaries that were in attendance, as well as the candidates that had made the effort to attend, as well. Spencer noted that no local candidates will have an opponent on the primary ballots, and some candidates chose to attend, but not to speak.

Local Democratic candidates Steve Cowan, Jack Martin, and Kim Thomasson are all running unopposed in the primary, which will be March 1. They also did not draw any opponents on the Republican ticket, and will be running unopposed at the general election in November, as well. Cowan is running for re-election as County Attorney, Martin is seeking re-election as sheriff, and Thomasson is seeking re-election to the position of Tax Assessor-Collector.

Candidates for County Commissioner, Precinct 1, Dennis and Allen and Mike Rogers were both in attendance and spoke to constituents during the forum. Incumbent Allen is a 50 year resident of Morris County, and has served as Commissioner since his appointment in 2008. Allen is unopposed in the Democratic primary. Allen will be running unopposed in the Republican primary, and has 25-plus years of business experience in Lone Star, where he has owned Lone Star Lube since 1995.

Michael Clair, the Democratic candidate for Commissioner of Precinct 3, will run unopposed in the March 1 primary, and be opposed by Republican Justin Cobb in the November general election. Clair has been a commissioner for 8 years, and said his father’s 20 year career as Commissioner of Precinct 3 has given him guidance during his time serving the people of Morris County.

Three candidates for House District 5 were in attendance: Randy Davis, Cole Hefner, and Philip Hayes. Davis has a background in law enforcement, and credits his wife for getting him into the race, saying “You always complain about politicians, why don’t you do something about it?” As a former Military Policeman, Davis plans to make protecting freedoms a priority in his campaign. Hefner, who was raised in Pittsburg, is tired of politicians “playing the game.” He has a history of service at the local level, and believes in local control for local governments. Hayes, who grew up in Lindale and served on the Hideaway City Council, plans to make education his number one priority.

A time of intermission and refreshments was offered following the candidate speeches. Spencer encouraged the residents in attendance to submit questions for the candidates, to be used during the question and answer time following intermission. During the break, Lou Gigliotti and a Michael Bulloch, representative for David Simpson, arrived. Gigliotti is running for United States Congress, Seat 4, against John Ratcliffe. Simpson is running for Texas State Senate.

During the question and answer time for the commissioner candidates, the candidates were asked what they planned to do in light of the unique challenges that will be facing Morris County in the future. Each one focused on doing what they can to bring businesses to Morris County. When asked how they planned to bring businesses to Morris County, the two incumbents, Allen and Clair, both see tax abatements as a good plan, while Allen also will work to get water to the north end of the county, at the I-30 and Highway 259 corridor. Rogers suggested improvements to the infrastructure of the county to go along with the tax abatements to make it advantageous for businesses to locate in Morris County.

During the State Representative candidates question and answer time, one question was raised regarding the economic development of Morris County. Hughes’ stand is to strengthen the Economic Development Corporation, while Davis stated “government doesn’t create jobs, businesses create jobs,” adding it needed to be conducive to businesses relocating to Morris County. Hefner intends to push to keep regulations and taxes low, adding there is no reason to take money from individuals to give to businesses. Bulloch, who spoke to the same questions for Senate Candidate Simpson, also spoke against corporate welfare, and said Simpson also supported eliminating the franchise tax, which hurts small, local business owners.

Early voting for the March primary began on Feb. 16, at the County Clerk’s office. Early voting runs through Feb. 26. The Primary election will be held on March 1.

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