Candidates vie for Precinct 4 seat

The Nov. 4 election for Hunt County Precinct 4 commissioner provides Texas A&M University-Commerce students with two candidates to choose between: incumbent Jim Latham, Democrat, and Frank Janda, Republican.

Latham is serving his second four-year term.

"I don't believe in term limits," he said. "I think that the electorate is capable of determining the length of the term of any elected official."

Janda's view on term limits differs from Latham's, which is part of the reason he decided to enter the race.

"One reason for running for office is my belief in term limits," Janda said. "Part of the reason our country is in the mess it's in right now is because after a few years in office, opportunities for corruption arise and the officeholders lose interest in serving their constituents."

He said the position of county commissioner is not meant to be a "career opportunity."

Latham had a hand in starting "The Big Event," an annual Commerce event designed to engage the City of Commerce and A&M-Commerce in community service.

"A few of us wanted to come up with something that would bring the university and city closer," Latham said.

"The Big Event" has been taking place for 11 years.

"A couple years after ‘The Big Event' had started, the former commissioner Alan Martin approached me, told me he was retiring and asked if I would be interested in running for commissioner," Latham said. "At first my response was "No way,' but since then I have become entrenched in it. I feel ownership, and I really like doing my job."

Janda owns the local paper Giggle and Grins and decided this challenge was something that intrigued him.

"The interest in the future of Hunt County is my motivation," Janda said. "I would like to see our commissioner be more than just an overseer of our roads. The county commissioner needs to be a leader and an advocate for his constituents in making sure that Precinct 4 is not left out of the economic planning."

Whoever is elected Precinct 4 commissioner will have the potential to reach out to A&M-Commerce students.

"As it stands today, I would say that the commissioner does not have much impact on A&M-Commerce," Janda said. "As your next commissioner, I would like to open up a new relationship between the commissioner's court and the university."

Until last year, Latham had a work study program available for A&M-Commerce students, which was discontinued due to budget cuts.

"One of the things I did in my precinct was to hire college students in the trades and industry program to help us in the summer," Latham said. "I have had about six students who have all gone on to be successful contractors, bidders, or work for big construction companies. If the budget permitted, I would defiantly bring the program back."

One issue Latham and Janda agree on is the need for grants to improve the condition of county roads.

"It's the county roads that the commissioner is responsible for, and yes, there are other sources of funding that can be utilized for county roads and infrastructures that are not currently being used," Janda said. "These include federal dollars, grant money, corporate money and sometimes even private money."

Latham said he would "love to use grant money for the improvement of roads," but has found through experience that it is nearly impossible to obtain such grants.

"We are always looking for ways to improve our roads," Latham said. "I have heard that my opponent has mentioned that his platform would be to get grants to improve the road programs. I hate to inform him that the eight years I have been here there is no one offering grants to improve county roads. It's a nice thing to say, but it just doesn't happen."