Last day to register to vote: Oct. 6
Early voting: Oct. 20–31
Election day: Nov. 4
Robert Hebert
Fort Bend County Judge incumbent Robert Hebert is a former business owner and U.S. Navy veteran. Hebert began his career in local government in the 1980s when he worked under contract as the city manager of Rosenberg. He was hired to address the city's budget concerns during an economic recession, and since 1983, Hebert has worked as a consultant to the private and public sectors.
Before taking office as County Judge in 2003, Hebert served on several boards, including Alief ISD, the Greater Fort Bend Economic Development Council and as director and president for the Brazos River Authority.
What are some pressing issues facing the county?
There is always the constant issue of handling the growth. If we sit on our hands for four or five years, our roads will be clogged, quality of life is going to deteriorate and home values will start to decline because of those issues. We have to stay on top of it as best we can. A major issue that will confront us in the next few years is the fact that while [the county] has grown, all of our cities have not been able to grow with us. They have grown internally but they have not been able to annex effectively, which leaves a large amount of the urban population living in unincorporated areas than in all of our cities combined. If [cities] don't annex, it falls on the county to provide those urban services.
How has your experience prepared you for this role?
I have always been involved in both the private-sector business side and the government side both as a businessman working with government entities and as a consultant to government entities. I understand what government is about. When working as a consultant to get things done, you help solve complex problems. You get to a point where you really enjoy that. As County Judge, you have to build consensus to get things done.
How should Fort Bend County manage its growth?
Our court and department heads have been very innovative in coming up with ways to mitigate the problem. We will be working with the [Texas] Legislature this upcoming session to undertake the studies necessary to understand the problem of maintaining our infrastructure. We probably need to tweak the legislation we have [because] it is unclear who our partners should be and who is responsible for what.
James Pirtle
James Pirtle—a distant cousin of Jess Pirtle, one of the five founding aldermen of Sugar Land—founded an industrial fasteners company that carries a broad line of products in 1983. He also serves on the Quail Valley utility district board where he has served two terms as president.
In addition, Pirtle has served with local homeowners associations and serves on the tourist board of Missouri City, where he helped with the Texas Parkway sidewalk project. He holds several bachelor's degrees, including communications and English and a minor in geology, from Murray State University in Kentucky. Pirtle has worked for years as a life coach with the state prison system.
What are some pressing issues facing the county?
In 10 years, our population is going to double and we better be prepared to work with the different communities, the different populations and the decision-makers in these communities. I can do that, and I can do it well. The county is going to grow whether we direct it or not. The people are going to move here, I recognize that going in. I have to be able to work with various groups and leaders. There are different needs and different approaches to solve these problems.
How has your experience prepared you for this role?
I have a lot of experience in the business world. One of the things about being in this kind of business is we get to look into many other businesses. Everybody uses our product at one time or another. This relates to the position because the County Judge [role] requires a good handle on how everything works. You need to have a good, broad overview of managing business, on working with people and reaching a consensus among different groups. You can only get this through experience.
Why are you running for County Judge?
There are a lot of advantages the county can avail itself that it is not doing. I want the job because I can do the job, and I feel I can do it better than it is being done now. It is a matter of being able to identify needs, identify a path to solve that need and the ability of being able to execute. You need to be able to pull the trigger, and that is where my business experience comes in. We can get lost in the paralysis of analysis but we have to be able to step forward.
