Latham defeats Janda in tight commissioner race

The hotly contested Precinct 4 County Commissioner race ended Nov. 2 with incumbent Jim Latham (D) retaining his position.

The race was neck-and-neck throughout most of the evening, with Latham taking the lead and winning the race by 400 points when the final results came out.

"I'm very tired," Latham said. "This was a long and hard campaign."

Latham's opponent, Frank Janda (R), said the voters got what they wanted tonight.

"A 400 point victory says it all," he said.

Janda said there was only one thing he could have done differently to win the race.

"I could have changed to the Democratic party," he said.

Latham said he plans to continue his work along the same path he has in the last four years.

"We are going to continue the same programs we have," he said. "We are up to the challenge."

Janda said he thinks Hunt County is Democratic Party stronghold, which also contributed to his loss.

"The Democratic Party stood up and spoke tonight," he said.

This race – like many this year – was littered with negative comments, most of which came from Janda.

Latham said he thinks that is the biggest lesson that can be learned from this year's elections.

"I don't run campaigns like that and the people responded," he said. "I hope this a lesson to anyone who runs, period."

Janda said he plans to return to taking care of his family and his business, but said he does not know if he will run again in four years.

"It just depends on how I feel in four years," he said.

Latham said after he gets some rest he has a pretty specific plan on how he will spend the first day after the election.

"First thing is to get all my signs back and then it's back to business as usual," he said.