Primary filing deadline passes: Local races feature new and familiar faces

From staff reports

The field for the 2022 Texas Primary Elections is set, with a flurry of candidates officially tossing their names in the hat just before the Dec. 13 filing deadline who will be on the ballot when early voting begins on Valentine’s Day.
The top of the 2022 Caldwell County ballot features a rematch between two former foes.
Caldwell County Judge Hoppy Haden will seek a second term in 2022 and will face former Caldwell County Judge Ken Schawe. Schawe, who served as judge from 2014-2018, lost to Haden in a primary runoff in 2018.
In the Democratic primary, veteran Anna Ybarra is running unopposed.
Republican voters in Caldwell County Pct. 4 will now choose between two candidates in that race. Retired contractor and former 2018 Republican nominee Jerry West will face off against Rob Ortiz, President of the Greater Caldwell County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
As of the deadline, Democratic Primary voters will choose between auctioneer Frank Sughrue and Dyral Thomas, who listed his occupation as paraprofessional coach on his application.
As of Tuesday, five candidates were vying for the Republican ticket for District 17 State Representative, running to replace District 17 State Rep. John Cyrier, who announced he wasn’t seeking an additional term.
Jumping into the race this week were Bastrop County Judge Paul Pape (who received Cyrier’s endorsement), consultant Stan Gerdes and rancher Trey Rutledge. As of last week’s paper, Bastrop County resident Jen Bezner, who listed her occupation as office manager, and Tom Glass of McDade, a retiree whose wife, Kathie Glass, ran for governor as a Libertarian in 2014, were the only two Republican nominees.
On the Democratic side, Madeleine Eden, an entrepreneur from Bastrop, will run unopposed in the primary. Josh Tutt, an IT professional from College Station who filed in November, has withdrawn from the race.
District 35 Congressman Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin said he would seek the nomination for the newly created District 37, which includes primarily Travis County and portions of Austin. The new district was created during redistricting that followed the 2020 Decennial US Census.
Eight candidates — four Democrats and four Republicans — have their sights set on the crowded District 35 race.
Vying for the Democratic nomination are Austin City Councilmember Greg Casar, District 51 Congressman Eddie Rodriguez, Consultant Carla Joy Sisco and San Antonio City Councilwoman Rebecca Viagran.
Republican Primary candidates include Sam Montoya, an InfoWars reporter who was arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, Realtor Jenai Aragona, construction worker Alejandro Ledezma, soldier/entrepreneur Asa George Kent Palagi and retiree Dan Sawatzki.
In District 27, Congressman Michael Cloud, R-Victoria has filed to defend his seat. He will be challenged in the Republican Primary by Port O’Connor businessman Chris Mapp, oil and gas consultant Eric Mireles and auto dealer consultant Andrew Alvarez. Challenging for District 27 in the Democratic Primary are Victor Melgoza, a doctor from Corpus Christi; Maclovio Perez Jr., a broadcaster from Corpus Christi, and Anthony Tristan, a consultant from Port Aransas.
Caldwell County Court at Law Judge Barbara Molina is thus far running unopposed in the Democratic Primary. Attorney Trey Hicks has filed for the Republican primary for a chance to challenge Molina in the general election in November.
District Clerk Juanita Allen has filed for the Republican primary. No Democrat has filed for that race.
County Treasurer Angela Meuth Rawlinson-R has filed for reelection and remains the lone candidate in that race.
County Clerk Teresa Rodriguez-D is the only candidate who has officially filed for that race.
Incumbent Pct. 2 County Commissioner Barbara Shelton-R has filed for reelection and will be challenged by Luling Tire Service owner Rusty Horne. No Democrat has filed for the primary election in that race.
Incumbent Pct. 1 Justice of the Peace Matt Kiely has filed to run for reelection and will be challenged in the Republican primary by Suzy Falgout, a life coach who lists her occupation as independent contractor. Falgout previously ran as a write-in candidate for Pct. 1 JP in 2018. There are no candidates in that race for the Democratic Primary.
Incumbent Pct. 2 JP Shanna Conley-R, is, so far, the only candidate who has officially filed for that race. The same is true for the Pct. 3 JP race, where incumbent Anita Deleon-D is the only candidate to have filed.
Raymond DeLeon-D will not seek reelection for Pct. 4 Justice of the Peace. Yvette Mireles, who lists her occupation as receptionist, will run in the Democratic primary. In the Republican primary, two more challengers are seeking their party’s nomination in that race: Michael Lumley, who lists his occupation as business owner, and Charity Kittrell, founder/president of 4:12 Kids, a non-profit organization.