Bay City Tribune

Former Sheriff James D. Mitchell has announced he will run for Matagorda County Precinct 2 Commissioner in the March 2010 Democratic Primary.

The position will be vacated by George Deshotels upon his retirement at the end of 2010.

Mitchell has worked all of his adult life in public service.

"I have always enjoyed serving this county and I want to continue to do so as your county commissioner. Over the years, I have often considered serving as county commissioner and with George (Deshotels) retiring, it just seems like the right thing to do," said Mitchell.

Mitchell is a native of Bay City and Matagorda County. He currently resides with his wife, Paula, in Precinct 2 inside of Bay City, and they also maintain a second home in Sargent.

James and Paula share four children and three grandchildren with two more on the way.

Mitchell graduated from Bay City High School in 1978 and attended the Wharton County Jr. College Police Academy in 1981-82.

He has served 27 years as a peace officer in Matagorda County. The past 12 of those years were as sheriff of Matagorda County.

Mitchell feels his administrative experience as sheriff better qualifies him as a candidate for county commissioner.

"After twelve years of handling personnel and budgeting issues, emergency management issues, regular attendance in Commissioner's Court and related workshops, I feel I have greater insight into the duties of county commissioner than most people would," Mitchell said.

He said this gives him not only a working knowledge of Matagorda County's policies and procedures as well as the vast challenges that it faces, but a true understanding of what is required of this position and its role in county government.

Mitchell believes that Precinct 2 is the busiest precinct in Matagorda County and feels the issues facing Precinct 2 differ from the rest of the county.

Mitchell says with the combination of coastal issues, population growth in the Sargent and Matagorda areas and the increased needs of drainage and infrastructure, Precinct 2 has many unique challenges.

There are also those challenges that are countywide such as rising property values and declining revenues for the county.

One major issue for Mitchell is salary and benefits for county employees.

"Taking care of our employees has always been a priority to me," Mitchell said.

"We must retain loyal, qualified employees. The only way to do that is to provide competitive salaries and benefit packages. This may mean re-evaluating our priorities. Obviously, if we do not retain competent employees we cannot properly serve the citizens of this county, and that is what it is all about."

"Always as sheriff, my goal was to serve the citizens of this county and treat them with fairness, compassion and respect, making myself available to everyone for any reason. I want to focus this same attitude on Precinct 2 and the County Commissioner's office," said Mitchell.

"My motto has always been, 'together there is no problem we cannot solve, it must be solved.' Matagorda County has gone through and will continue to experience its economic hard times and growing pains. We need a strong voice on commissioners court that will push for economic growth while ensuring a secure future for our children and generations to come. This can be achieved through a commonsense approach to decision making, accountability and accepting responsibility. During these times we need strong, dedicated and proven leadership and that is what I will provide you, the citizens of Precinct 2 and Matagorda County."