The incumbent Nueces County judge will face a former county employee in the November election for the role that leads the local government.
The county judge role affects taxpayers, county employees and all residents who rely on social services such as courthouse, parks and library operations.
The candidates are Republican incumbent Connie Scott, elected in 2023, and Democrat Aidee Hernandez, who previously worked as the manager for the Nueces County Commissioners Court.
Both candidates ran unopposed in the primary. Scott received 18,768 votes, and Hernandez received 20,421.
Campaign finance reports show that Scott has far outraised and outspent Hernandez in the race. Scott's campaign contributions totaled $17,250 between July 1 and Oct. 4, and she
had $117,277 remaining as of Oct. 4. Scott had spent $106,645 on campaign expenses.
Hernandez had contributions of $9,214 between July 1 and Sept. 24, according to a report filed Oct. 5. She had spent $6,217 and had $2,922 remaining.
Why does a county judge matter?
Paul Gottemoller, political science professor at Del Mar College, said a common misconception is that a county judge presides over criminal or civil courts.
The county judge actually serves as a chief executive officer and presides over four elected county commissioners.
A county judge is the head of emergency management and oversees road and bridge infrastructure and county services such as county courthouses, jails, libraries and parks.
Together, the Nueces County Commissioners Court is responsible for adopting a county budget and tax rate, filling vacancies in elective or appointed positions, authorizing contracts and maintaining county buildings and facilities, such as the county jail.
Aidee Hernandez
Hernandez, originally from Tampico, Mexico, has lived in Nueces County for 16 years.
She worked under previous Nueces County Judges Loyd Neal and Barbara Canales, as well as Scott, performing audit and budget duties.
With that experience, and having master’s degrees in business and accounting, Hernandez believes she can expand economic investments in the county, such as tourism and funding small businesses.
Providing assistance to small businesses will create more jobs, which will ultimately create more tax revenue for county services, she said.
Hernandez said she has an insider perspective on how county budgeting and emergency preparedness work through working for the county during the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Harvey.
If elected, she plans to expand the annual Coastal Bend Hurricane Conference to include small businesses and create a dashboard for ratepayers to view how tax dollars are being used for county services.
“I'm not planning to waste ... even a dollar,” she said. “We deserve to see our money as an investment, and that's what I want to offer to our community.”
With the upcoming Texas legislative session in January, Hernandez wants to advocate for increasing the minimum wage, reducing unemployment rates and responsible use of artificial intelligence.
Nueces County Democratic Party Chair Conor Rice believes that Hernandez’s experience of working with the county’s budget gives her credibility and that she is an example of putting people first.
“Aidee knows that in order to accomplish it takes collaboration,” he said.
“I think Aidee’s experience of working with the budget has immense strength to a public servant … that is really going to help make sure that our taxpayer dollars are going the furthest for the people who need it most.”
Connie Scott
Scott, originally from Luling, has lived in South Texas for three decades. She has served one term as county judge and was sworn in on Jan. 1, 2023.
Scott served as a state representative from 2011 to 2013. During her term in the Texas House, she served on the Defense and Veterans Affairs Committee, Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence Committee and the Local and Consent Calendars Committee.
Scott is also the executive director of the nonprofit Bay Area Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse.
Scott highlighted several accomplishments during her first term as county judge, including approving pay increases for county employees over the past two years, growing the county’s reserve fund balance, and working with the Commissioners Court and the Texas Historical Commission to finalize plans for the demolition of the 1914 Nueces County Courthouse.
Nueces County Republican Party Chair Carmen Calderone Jr. emphasized Scott's experience and believes she has a proven track record on maintaining financial responsibility.
"Judge Scott has experience in the Legislature, she has experience running a business, working with [a] nonprofit, and working as county judge, so she's got everything we need and this is not the time to change that," he said.
If she is reelected, Scott’s main focuses will be continuing infrastructure repairs and projects, funding a state-mandated county sprinkler system and improving the county jail.
Since being in office, Scott has worked with Nueces County Sheriff J.C. Hooper on addressing an influx in jail work orders, such as faulty intercoms, which could lead to transferring an incarcerated person to another jail and, in turn, cost the county money.
As a solution, the Commissioners Court approved transferring four public works employees and a maintenance budget under Hooper.
“The sheriff and I are both accountable to the state when jail standards comes in, and we both get called to Austin,” she said. “So when he asks for something to be done, it is not a trivial thing when we have to take care of those things and meet the state regulations. … We're going to need a new jail eventually, but that's why I need to be in another four years.”
While funding infrastructure projects is a priority for Scott, responding to water insecurity has been part of emergency management this year. In April, the Commissioners Court declared a local state of disaster due to what was then an impending water emergency, and the county took various measures to conserve water in county facilities and departments.
“I have no doubt that we may be back in [addressing water] another time soon, but we have a plan in place to help do our part,” Scott said.
Scott recalls coming into a “contentious” court, but said she has worked toward establishing respect across the Commissioners Court and solving problems together.
“The county judge job is not glamorous,” she said. “It's really just about going to work every day just like a business, dealing with employee issues, dealing with breakdowns, dealing with financial issues, trying to find funds to take care of the problems that we have, too.
“It's really about relationships and coming together to work on problems. … I'm pretty impressed with how far we've come.”
If reelected, Scott confirmed it will be her last. The position does not have a term limit.
How could the race turn out?
Gottemoller said the Nov. 3 election for county judge could reflect a bigger picture of the nationwide political climate.
“If it’s an election year where voters want to see more change because they’re unhappy, then swapping would be in [Hernandez’s] favor,” he said.
“On the other hand, if it’s one where people are feeling unsettled and unsure, somebody like Connie Scott, who is a known quantity, is somebody who would have an advantage there.”
Gottemoller discussed what each candidate has on their side and what could lead voters to split their ballot selections.
“Aidee has the momentum of what [the] national trend has been going, with her, but Connie Scott has been around for many years and she’s kind of a known quantity.”
“Some candidates who are more established who have … generally good public image, they can pull away voters who are going to be voting straight ticket and make them split their tickets.”
In general, Gottemoller urges voters to be aware of county government actions.
“Oftentimes these county races, unless things are really going badly, you don’t hear much about it, but the decisions they make have huge impacts on the daily quality of life.”
Early voting for the midterm election is Oct. 19 to Oct. 30, and Election Day is Nov. 3.
Felicity Guajardo covers breaking news and public safety. Contact her at felicity.guajardo@caller.com.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Nueces County judge candidates zero in on priorities ahead of election
