It will be another month or so before contenders in the upcoming
race for the open sheriff’s seat will become clear.
It will be another month or so before the slate of contenders in the upcoming race for the open sheriff’s seat will becomes clear.
With Sheriff Curtis Hill announcing last week he will retire after three terms in office, it leaves the potential for a wide-open race for the June primary and, possibly, the November general election.
Hill was elected to three consecutive terms starting in 1998 and, when done, will have worked in the local office for nearly 35 years.
The official candidacy period to succeed him, however, does not begin until Feb. 16, while potential candidates for the first time can pull nomination papers Jan. 4, said Joe Paul Gonzalez, the county’s head elections official. Potential candidates during that time frame can collect signatures in lieu of nomination fees.
The nomination period lasts from Feb. 16 until March 17 and it is extended five days because the incumbent is not running, Gonzalez said.
Look to an upcoming edition of the Free Lance for a full list of open seats in next year’s elections.
