Tarrant County Sheriff's Race To Be Decided In Runoff
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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Tarrant County's top cop could be unseated on Tuesday as voters head to the polls once again to decide who will get to lead the sheriff's department. This is a runoff election for a race that was left undecided during the first primary back in March.
Once again, the election results are expected to be close, and a lot of eyes will be turned toward this Republican race.
Dee Anderson, the current sheriff for Tarrant County, is being seriously challenged by retired Dalworthington Gardens police chief Bill Waybourn. Even though Waybourn trailed by more than 13,000 votes during the first primary, he has stated that the runoff actually favors him.
Waybourn spent more than 30 years as chief of the Dalworthington Gardens Police Department, and has gotten endorsements from former Gov. Rick Perry and multiple area law enforcement associations -- including those in Fort Worth, Arlington and Mansfield.
"He's a little bit more in tune to the law enforcement," said Jim Thompson, who said that he voted for Waybourn. "Anderson, yes, was a police chief before, but he's been sheriff a lot."
Meanwhile, Anderson remains encouraged by the number of voters who have already cast their ballots. He has held the sheriff position in Tarrant County since 2001. This would be his fifth and self-proclaimed final term. Anderson has been in the media recently due to his role in the Ethan Couch investigation.
"You really just try to keep your people motivated, try to get people out," Anderson said in March. "It's very easy for people to not vote in a runoff, so the challenge is getting people to return to the polls."
Monty Tucker said that he voted for Anderson "because I have faith in him. He made the statement that he was elected to run the jail, and that's what he's going to do."
There is no Democratic candidate in this race, so whichever man wins will be the next sheriff of Tarrant County. The polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.