Chapter Three
Public Safety
Harris County is home to the most active constables in Texas and third-largest sheriff’s office in the country. For the nearly 2 million residents living in unincorporated parts of Harris County, these elections will determine the leaders of the law enforcement offices with the most direct impact on those communities.
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Harris County
District Attorney
The district attorney represents the State of Texas in criminal proceedings in the Harris County criminal district courts and county criminal courts at law. The office investigates and prosecutes crimes, and works through the grand jury system to file charges against individuals.
Your criminal justice system
- The district attorney is Harris County’s lead criminal prosecutor.
- The district attorney sets department policies and priorities for prosecuting criminal offenses, from low-level drug crimes to murder cases.
Harris County
District Attorney
Incumbent District Attorney Kim Ogg lost her re-election bid to primary challenger Sean Teare earlier this year. Learn more about Teare and his Republican opponent Dan Simons below.
Republican
Dan Simons
Democrat
Sean Teare
Harris County
Sheriff
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office is the largest in Texas and third-largest in the nation. With nearly 5,100 employees and 200 volunteer reservists, the sheriff is responsible for law enforcement efforts across the county, and operating the Harris County Jail.
Your safety
- The sheriff’s office provides law enforcement services to county residents.
- Sheriff’s deputies have jurisdiction in both incorporated and unincorporated areas, but tend to defer to municipal police officers in incorporated cities.
- As the chief executive officer of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, the sheriff has final authority to determine office policies and procedures.
Your criminal justice system
- The sheriff oversees and maintains the Harris County Jail.
- The sheriff provides bailiffs for county and district courts.
Harris County
Sheriff
Incumbent Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, a Democrat, is running for re-election against Republican Mike Knox. Learn more about the candidates below.
Democrat (incumbent)
Ed Gonzalez
Republican
Mike Knox
Harris County
Constables
Harris County constables have unique and sometimes expansive powers that their counterparts in other Texas counties do not have. Constables here have larger budgets and staffs than most other counties and serve large portions of unincorporated Harris County in need of law enforcement that normally would be provided by a local, municipal police department.
Your safety
- Harris County constables, similar to their counterparts across the state, serve warrants and other legal documents, including subpoenas and eviction notices.
- Constables and deputy constables in Harris County also act similarly to city police officers or sheriff’s deputies. Each constable’s office has its own dispatch system, and can respond directly to service calls.
- Harris County constable offices also participate in a controversial “contract deputy” program in which neighborhoods can pay for extra patrols to their communities.
Harris County
Constables
There are eight constables in Harris County, each serving a single precinct.
This year, more than half the constable candidates, including incumbents, are running unopposed. Only voters in precincts 3, 4 and 5 will choose between two candidates this fall. Learn more about each constable candidate below.
Enter your Harris County address to learn what precinct you live in
Uncontested
Precinct 1
Uncontested
Precinct 2
Contested
Precinct 3
Contested
Precinct 4
Contested
Precinct 5
Uncontested
Precinct 6
Uncontested
Precinct 7