Know the candidates: Wichita County Judge

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - It has been over 20 years since someone not by the name of Woody Gossom was the judge of Wichita County, but come Nov. 8, that will change.

With Gossom retiring, voters will decide between Republican candidate Jim Johnson and Democratic candidate Janaye Evans.

Both of them say it would be an honor to take the seat after everything Gossom has done for the county, but they both seek change and improvements that they are ready to instill if elected.

“I was born and raised in Wichita Falls,” Johnson said. “I have been working as the chief of staff for our state representative for the last nearly 10 years. Been in public service for a while, developed good networks for how to get stuff done, figured out the process for how to improve things.”

“I have eight years of being a paralegal, so I have a legal background,” Evans said. “Being a mother, you have to know how to budget. I am a people person, I know how to keep the public informed being with my position as a paralegal always being the point of contact before getting to the attorney.”

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Each candidate brings different ideas to the table on what they would like to do if elected.

“If there is a backlog in the log for the cases that need to get out of there, I want to get that taken care of first,” Evans said. “I will also like to change how they inform the public on what the money is being spent on. I would like to make it to where the public is more involved in that decision.”

“I have been participating in the meetings to develop the budget and saw some areas where, though I think we are in a good spot now, we can improve,” Johnson said. “How we are getting to the tax rate we have set and whether we are carrying enough of a reserve or too much of a reserve because every single dollar that is sitting there has been taken from taxpayers for a purpose. I think looking at budget process is number one.”

They both said they have what it takes to do the best job as Wichita County judge and are looking forward to serving the community the best way possible.

“I bring a heart to public service,” Johnson said. “I have got the experience and the background that has prepared me best to take over this job and to be ready to go as soon as elected.”

“If you are ready for change, if you are tired of the way that things have always been done, if you are ready to be informed, if you are looking for somebody that values your opinion and really is going to listen to what you say and let you have an opinion, not just tell you what is going to happen, then vote for me,” Evans said.

Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 24. Election day is Tuesday, Nov. 8.

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