Houston County Elects New Sheriff 

By Greg Ritchie

Messenger Reporter

HOUSTON COUNTY – As polls closed Tuesday, Mar. 5, the first votes after the long campaigns were released in the Houston County primary elections, with a new sheriff elected for the county after challenger Zak Benge prevailed over incumbent Houston County Sheriff Randy Hargrove in the Republican primary. With no challenger from the democratic party for sheriff, Benge will be the next sheriff for the county. 

With over 3,000 early votes and under 2,000 votes on Election Day itself, the early voting numbers set the tone for the night, with most incumbents maintaining their offices, albeit with several close challenges. 

In the race for sheriff, the two candidates fought a hard campaign, with the county covered with signs and visits from the two men. In the end, the county voted for change, with the early voting numbers trending in Benge’s favor by a margin of 60% to Hargrove’s 40%. 

While a final vote count was not available before press time, The Messenger was able to call the race for Benge shortly before 11 p.m., given the number of outstanding votes versus votes counted. 

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Contacted after the race had been called, Benge explained his opinion of what had moved Houston County voters to make a change. 

“I think people were looking for some leadership and some accountability,” Benge told The Messenger. “They were looking for approachability and a new direction. With more community oriented style policing, where we work with the community.”

The work that goes into a campaign – in a county as big as Houston County can be exhausting, win or lose, and all of the candidates expressed privately to The Messenger the effort they made to visit as much of the county as possible and make their cases to as many voters as they could. 

“I woke up very relaxed, because I knew that today I could go back to putting my family first. My wife was very nervous all day. I’ve worked hard and right now, I am glad it’s over and looking forward to what’s next,” Benge noted. 

In the race for Houston County Precinct One Commissioner, incumbent Gary Lovell opened a lead in early voting with 53% of the vote, compared to rivals Butch Patton (29%) and Will Yates (18%,) a margin he held throughout the vote count, leadingThe Messenger to call the race for Lovell, and as of press time, a runoff between the two leading candidates seemed unlikely. 

State Representative Trent Ashby, in spite of an error in the spelling of his first name, roared out of the gate with 75% of the vote in early voting, giving him an early lead which challenger Paulette Carson was unable to overcome. 

In Anderson County, there were reports of a computer glitch, which as of press time, could not be confirmed, but in unconfirmed early vote totals, incumbent Sheriff Rudy Flores held a commanding lead over challengers Jeff Taylor and Ginger Lively. 

In the race for U.S. Senate, incumbent Republican Ted Cruz dominated the voting over Republican challengers for his place on the November ballot. 

President Donald Trump put another notch on his belt over Republican rival Nikki Haley, winning both the state of Texas and the county. In Texas, Trump finished north of 50% ahead of Haley. In Houston County, Trump won with almost 90% of Republican votes. 

In national Democratic party races, President Joe Biden easily won the county and the state, while Senatorial Challenger Colin Allred was out to an early lead on the democratic ticket, easily besting the other eight candidates in that race. 

The Messenger will have full voting totals, including the various propositions on the Republican ballots in Sunday’s newspaper. 

Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]