Candidate Profiles: Stephens County Commissioner, Precinct 3
Below you’ll find the Candidate Profile Questionnaires that were returned to the Breckenridge Texan by the candidates for the office of Stephens County Commissioner, Precinct 3.
We normally list the candidates in the order that their names will appear on the ballot, but in this election, there is one candidate whose name will be printed on the ballot and one who is running as a write-in. Therefore, we are listing them in that order, with the candidate whose name is on the ballot first, followed by the write-in candidate.
Will Warren, who is the current Precinct 3 County Commissioner, ran unopposed in the March Republican Primary election and won the nomination to run for the office again. In August, Houston Satterwhite filed to run as a write-in candidate against Warren.
At the end of this story is an editor’s note that explains how the questionnaires were distributed, compiled, etc.
Click here to read the main election article.
Will Warren
What office are you seeking? Stephens County Commissioner Precinct 3
What is your current occupation? Stephens County Commissioner Precinct 3
Tell us a little bit about your family.
Shonda my wife of 34 years. She worked for the BISD for 23 years and now works at Levare. 2 sons: Ryler and wife Sabrina and grandson Ronan. Ryler was in the US Navy for 7 years and is currently in culinary school. Talon is a Air Force veteran of 6 years and is currently in college. 2 daughters: Madi and Connor and grandson Flint are back home in Breckenridge and get to cowboy a lot. Jesi is in Clarendon College playing volleyball. And my dog Ennis that goes everywhere with me except the Courthouse.
What are your community involvements/civic affiliations?
As a Commissioner, I’m involved in a lot of things in the community. So I don’t join clubs or organizations because if any need to ask for funding, I would like to remain unbiased. I do however love to help cook Thanksgiving Dinner at the VFW every year.
What is your education/military service?
- TSTI Waco Diesel Mechanic school
- Texas Fire Commission Firefighter School
- Well over 460 hours of CE’s in over 23 years at the Breckenridge Fire Department
- 130 hours so far of Texas County Commissioners School
What training, experiences and characteristics qualify you for this position?
I’ve operated equipment for 39 years. I was a Firefighter for 23 years and have cowboyed and ranch-worked a lot of those years. All of these jobs put you in tough situations that require you to think and make decisions on the fly. But I don’t think you can have qualifications for public office, you can have some that help, but until you’ve held and experienced all the problems that come with it and researched and talked to attorneys about those problems, you’re really just flying blind.
What do you think are the most critical issues facing the community and what would you do to address them, if elected?
The rising cost of running local government. There are 3 things we can do or have done.
- Cut costs, employees, contracts, and find grants
- Work with the City, EDC to entice business to come to the county which will spread out the property taxes, and bring them down.
- Find a way to get the State to fund all the mandates that they require of us.
Do you support the proposed sales tax for rural Stephens County that will be on the November ballot? If yes, please explain why. If no, please explain why not.
No I don’t support it. It’s at 6.25% now and I hope everyone knows that the State gets all of that. If we vote to go up 2%, it costs everyone 2% more if you live outside the city limits and buy something online or from a business in the County. I think it will cost the consumers more than it will save on property taxes.
Describe a personal accomplishment of which you are proud and how it helps make you the best candidate for the office.
In 2012 I had the opportunity to take part in guiding 27 Wounded Warriors on a hog hunt. The following year the Warren family started a Warrior hunt of their own. Along with some great friends and land owners, we have guided around 100 Warriors on hog hunts, many have become personal friends. I don’t know if it makes me the best candidate for the job, but it is what I’m most proud of and the family supports all of my wild ideas.
Houston Satterwhite
What office are you seeking? County Commissioner Precinct 3
What is your current occupation? Self-employed at Huse Construction
Tell us a little bit about your family.
I have been married for 30 years to Tammy Satterwhite with two adult children, Lauren Ramiirez and Henry Satterwhite
What are your community involvements/civic affiliations?
I am a member of St Andrews Anglican Church, Rotary, Elks,
What is your education/military service?
- Cisco College Associate in Applied Arts 1987
- Texas State Certified Public Manager 2022
- NHI Leadership Academy 2023
- Several short schools on management, water and wastewater, municipal solid waste, asbestos planner manager, inspector, and supervisor, several classes on road markings, signage, and road maintenance.
What training, experiences and characteristics qualify you for this position?
I have over twenty years’ experience in public service, working my way up from laborer to assistant and interim city manager of operations. Between my public service and self-employment has given me a unique perspective on how government should share the same goals and challenges. Government is a business and should share the same expectations and goals as the private sector. Management of money, resources and being that second working employee are key to achieving those goals.
What do you think are the most critical issues facing the community and what would you do to address them, if elected?
- Money: Don’t spend what you don’t have to manage for the future.
- Roads/Personnel: Be the second employee in Precinct 3 to better manage and do the work that needs to be done.
- Community: Be available to the citizens of Stephens County to talk and share concerns about the operations and goals of Stephens County
Do you support the proposed sales tax for rural Stephens County that will be on the November ballot? If yes, please explain why. If no, please explain why not.
No, currently I have talked to too many people that are unaware of the sales tax increase for county sales or there has been too much misinformation about it. If it fails, I do think it needs to be readdressed for the next election. Any new tax is a hard sell without a black and white demonstration as to how it will benefit the citizens of Stephens County. This is a big decision that is worthy of discussion to see if the juice is worth the squeeze. This November 5th every county voter needs to think about how this sales tax increase works and what the outcome will be for the business and homeowner/ property owners.
Describe a personal accomplishment of which you are proud and how it helps make you the best candidate for the office.
In 2020 Heather Caraway and I were appointed co-city managers for the City of Breckenridge. One of tasks we were given was the budget. The City was faced with a $450,000 shortfall. Together we trimmed the budget and cut departments to keep our heads above water. During this period, we found a new health insurance provider to save the City an additional $190,000. We ended the year in the black. During our time as co-managers we dealt with flooding, freezemagedon, and covid. These events were taken care of because of our teamwork while working for the City of Breckenridge.
Editor’s note:
Each candidate in a contested Stephens County race in the 2024 General Election was contacted by phone and/or email and was presented with a list of questions via email.
All of the questionnaires were exactly the same. We asked the following questions:
- Name that will appear on the ballot or that will need to be written in by the voter
- What office are you seeking?
- What is your current occupation?
- Tell us a little bit about your family.
- What are your community involvements/civic affiliations?
- What is your education/military service?
- What training, experiences and characteristics qualify you for this position?
- What do you think are the most critical issues facing the community and what would you do to address them, if elected?
- Do you support the proposed sales tax for rural Stephens County that will be on the November ballot? If yes, please explain why. If no, please explain why not.
- Describe a personal accomplishment of which you are proud and how it helps make you the best candidate for the office.
The candidates also were asked to provide the Breckenridge Texan with a photograph.
The only editing we did was to run a basic spell-check on the files to correct typos and to put the questionnaires in a standard format.
If you have any questions about the profiles or our procedure, please send an email to: news@breckenridgetexan.com.
Check out these related articles on the Breckenridge Texan:
Early voting for Nov. 5 election to begin next week
Candidate Profiles: Stephens County Commissioner, Precinct 1
Rural Stephens County voters to consider county sales tax in November election
Jones challenges Fambro as write-in candidate for Precinct 1 County Commissioner position