Your Vote Counts: Brazos County Precinct 2 Commissioner candidates preparing for primary election

BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) - Four republican candidates for Brazos County Commissioner Precinct 2 are gearing up for the upcoming primary election on March 1. Incumbent Russ Ford is seeking re-election and has a diverse group of opponents including a businessman, a former mayor and a former county commissioner.

Ford is proud of the things he has accomplished while in office, but knows their is more work to be done.

“We got 44 million dollars allocated in that ARP money, the pandemic relief fund. We got 22 million of that in the bank right now that’s earning low interest while inflation is going up. So we’re losing buying power every day we don’t make some decisions with that,” said Ford.

Hoping to have another chance at being the Precinct 2 commissioner is Chuck Konderla. He took over after Sammy Catalena passed away in May 2020. He said his experience is needed right now to help take Brazos County into the future.

“With everything coming, with everything we have the opportunity to shape versus it shaping us. My resume is unique and needed in Precinct Two. It’s about the experience this resume brings to the position. Feeling that precinct two needs that right now and wishing that I could be elected to do that work,” said Konderla.

Former Kurten Mayor Ronnie Vitulli is on the ballot this year. He is a strong believer in having a full-time county commissioner and said he will quit his job to fill the role.

”The people I’m running against have announced that they are and currently have jobs. They’re either employed by a company, some of them are employed by a company and also own their own business and so to me the county pays a full-time salary and they deserve a full-time commissioner,” said Vitulli.

Businessman and Brazos County native Silas Garrett is hoping to bring the strategies he learned over the years to the position. He says with all of the responsibilities being precinct two brings, he believes the county should be run like a business. “It’s not really a job you can just go in their and willy nilly you have to know business practices business principles, how to do a budget, how to do manage people, how to deal with different adversities through the different departments in the county,” says Garrett.

Since there is no democratic candidate running for Precinct Two Commissioner and with more than one republican candidate, if no one gets a majority of the votes a runoff will be held to determine the nominee.

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