Former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez on Thursday announced she will run for her old job in 2024.
The Democrat resigned as sheriff in 2017 to run a losing campaign for governor against Republican Greg Abbott. The incumbent Abbott won 55.8-41.5% in a one-sided race.
Valdez was replaced on an interim basis in the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office by her deputy, Marian Brown, who has been elected twice as sheriff.
“I have had numerous calls from my former colleagues and friends asking me if I would consider running again for sheriff,” Valdez said in a statement on Twitter. “I am honored with their encouragement and look forward to a lively campaign. There is still much work to do in Dallas County, and as I have told my supporters and campaign team, I am not done yet.”
Valdez, 75, and Brown would face off in a March 5, 2024 primary, with the winner advancing to the November 5, 2024, general election.
“My experience leading the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office taught me that working with other community leaders is essential to solve issues with our criminal justice system here in Dallas County,” Valdez said in her campaign statement.
Brown, who was first sworn in on Jan. 1, 2018, after an appointment from Dallas County commissioners, began her career in law enforcement in 1988 with the Duncanville Police Department. She joined the Dallas Sheriff’s Office in 2014.
In the 2018 race to fill the final two years of Valdez’s term, Brown defeated Republican Aaron Meek (64.1-35.9%). In 2020, she defeated Republican Chad Prda (64.5-35.5%) after turning back Roy Williams Jr. and Sam Mohammad in the Democratic primary.
Brown announced in May that she would run for reelection.
“We are focused on making Dallas County safer and running an efficient, effective office,” Brown says on her campaign website. Let’s keep the progress going.”
