Fagan ahead in Democratic runoff for Fort Bend sheriff
Democratic sheriff hopeful Eric Fagan held a narrow lead over Geneane Hughes on Tuesday night in all but complete returns for the race for sheriff in Fort Bend County.
Fagan, a former Houston police officer, or Hughes, currently a deputy constable in Fort Bend County Precinct 2, would face off against Republican Trever Nehls, current Precinct 4 constable, in the November election for sheriff.
The winner will replace Nehls’ brother, Troy, the current sheriff who is running for Congress.
Fagan, 60, spent 31 years with the Houston Police Department in various roles, including on Mayor Sylvester Turner’s protection detail. The retired Houston police officer said he has worked tirelessly to bring police officers and the community together.
As president of the African American Police Officers’ League, he started an outreach program in which officers in Houston would attend services at different churches and fellowship with the members.
Fagan said law enforcement needs “to be proactive, instead of retroactive.”
“Every time there’s a problem, they want the citizens to reach out to the law enforcement. … We have to own up to some mistakes that we’ve made,” added Fagan, who retired from HPD in 2017. “We have to do that if we want real reform. We can’t hide behind the blue shield anymore. We have to open up the doors.”
Fagan said he favors body cameras for deputies and wants to improve how the sheriff’s department deals with mentally ill residents. He also said he wants to implement joint active shooter training for all Fort Bend County law enforcement agencies.
Hughes previously served for 10 years as a commander in the Missouri City Police Department. If elected, Hughes said she would seek body cameras for deputies and complete performance measurement and research on the Fort Bend County Jail. Hughes also said she wants to expand the crisis intervention team and conduct more intensive training to help officers better handle mental health calls.
The 46-year-old said being an African American woman and in law enforcement allows her to “cross a lot of different lines.”
She said she is looking to establish an outreach and collaboration program for community leaders and residents. The program would include a Police Athletic League, with a goal of improving relationships with the youth in the community.
“That’s what I’ve been doing throughout my entire career … trying to put police and community together,” Hughes said.
In other races Tuesday, voters will decide the Democratic nominee for county commissioner in Precinct One. Community activist
Jennifer Cantu held a slight lead over Lynette Reddix, former president of the Missouri City NAACP. The winner will face Republican incumbent Vincent Morales.
In the Democratic county attorney’s race, Bridgette Smith-Lawson, who is a managing attorney for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services’ Office of General Counsel, was leading Sonia Rash, a lawyer.
For the Republican county tax assessor-collector race, James Pressler, a real estate broker, was leading over J.J. Clemence, a certified financial auditor.
In the Democratic race for Constable Precinct 2, Daryl Smith, who has served as constable since 2018, was leading over Tonja Beard, who has 32 years of law enforcement experience.