A Broad View by Jerry Hogan: Politically the next three months are going to be very interesting in Rockwall County.

Rockwall, TX (December 18, 2023) – In March of next year, here in Texas, we will have the Primary election where the voters will select those candidates who will compete in November for the various elected positions.

And here in our county, we are going to have three highly competitive Republican races: County Commissioner for Precinct One, Three, and House Representative for House District 33.

Those running for Commissioner of Precinct One include Bob Gallana, a local small business owner and former candidate for school board. Also running is Jonny Lyons, a small business owner and former member of the Rockwall City P&Z.  And completing the slate of candidates is Mike Townsend, a former city council member of Rockwall.

Those running for Commissioner of Precinct Three include Rich Krause, currently retired and a current member for 12 years of the Heath city council. Also running is Lorne Liechty, an attorney and small business owner and former mayor of Heath who is currently President of the County Open Space Alliance and the Rockwall Rotary, as well as an elder at Lakeshore church.. The third candidate is Johnny Myers, a long-time resident of the county and currently President of the Rockwall Historic Foundation.

Winner of these races will replace two long time, experienced council members: Cliff Sevier and Dennis Bailey.

Cliff will have served for 12 years on the Court after a successful career in the US Army where he retired with the rank of Sergeant Major. He was elected to the Rockwall City Council prior to assuming his seat on the Court.

Dennis will have served for 16 years after his success as a former mayor of Heath and lobbyist for AT&T. While serving with four different County Judges, Dennis clearly retains the institutional history of the court and always brings sound solid reasoning to any issue brought forward.

With the election of the two new Commissioners, the Court will be composed of five representatives with the oldest experience of any on the Court being two years.

The race for House District 33 has just been made more exciting!

Currently holding this elected position is local businessman Justin Holland. He has just completed his fourth term, and unlike the previous three, this last term has been very controversial. Two major issues have caused his voting record to be under extreme scrutiny: School Choice and the proposed Impeachment of Ken Paxton, the Texas State Attorney General. Expect Holland to need to address these two voting decisions to the voters during the election campaign.

Running against Holland is newly announced candidate Katrina Pierson, a resident of Rockwall and former President Donald Trump’s national Spokesperson during his 2016 campaign. She is widely known in the U.S. due to her appearances on Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, and Newsmax. She is a solid conservative that burst on the national scene in 2009 with a speech she gave at the Dallas Tea Party. She was endorsed for this position by Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General, on Saturday, December 16. Expect to see her campaigning on her background and experience.

A third candidate running for this position is Dennis London, a resident of McLendon-Chisholm. Mr. London ran for this position during the last election. He has continued to speak out about Holland’s voting record and, if elected, how his platform will be much different than Holland’s.

As a citizen voter, you can expect over the next three months countless brochures through the mail on the merits of each candidate. Don’t be surprised if your neighbor invites you over for a meeting in their home where a candidate will explain to you their views and why you should vote for them. Numerous town hall meetings will be scheduled and sponsored debates between the candidates will be offered. Take advantage of all that is available!

All in all, the voting season is upon us. And it is an important season as its outcome will determine partially how we are to be governed for the next two to four years.

And if we don’t participate, well then, we have no authority to complain about the results.

Jerry Hogan is a former Rockwall County Judge who volunteers to write these weekly articles. He can be reached at jerryhogan@sbcglobal.net or 214-394-4033

  Collin County, county commissioner, election, Jerry Hogan, Rockwall County, state representative