Both candidates for county judge are ramping up their appeals to voters and touting their leadership abilities.

County Judge Jim Lewis, a Republican, is seeking a sixth term in office to keep the seat he has held since 1990. He faces Democrat Ralph Cooper, a Waco attorney.

Lewis has spent much of the past few months squeezing in face-to-face time with residents at events like Westfest, local parades, community dinners and fish fry fundraisers in cities and organizations throughout the county.

Lewis has also been a fixture at the Heart O’ Texas Fair & Rodeo and has a campaign sign inside the Extraco Events Center Coliseum.

His efforts netted him $53,100 in campaign contributions during the past quarter, dwarfing the $4,360.80 raised by Cooper in the same period.

Though Lewis’ donors include prominent local businessmen, he said he thinks his record has garnered respect and trust from residents across the county.

“People see that the county is in good shape, financially,” said Lewis, who until this year was the county’s chief budget officer. “We’re in the black, we’ve always been in the black, but other counties across the state are in the red. . . . It takes planning and being ahead of the game on (financial data) to make those good decisions.”

Cooper said he was not surprised by Lewis’ fundraising totals and acknowledged that his own resources are not enough to keep pace with Lewis in advertising.

Personal loans

Cooper is mailing new campaign materials and brochures this weekend that cost $14,000 — money he had to borrow in personal loans.

Cooper said he doesn’t count himself as the underdog in the race, insisting that he continues to hear pledges of support from Republicans and Democrats alike.

About 200 residents have requested “Republicans for Ralph Cooper” bumper stickers, he said.

“I have third-generation, yellow-dog Republicans driving around with bumper stickers on their vehicle for me,” Cooper said. “The issue for me is getting clear what my positions are and who my incumbent is.”

Cooper said his newest campaign advertising touts his own ideas for the county, such as transparency on the commissioners court.

He also raises questions about Lewis’ decisions in office, such as pushing the construction of the new Jack Harwell Detention Center on State Highway 6.

The 816-bed jail had 356 inmates as of midnight Friday — about 42 percent of the total capacity.

Community Education Centers, the New Jersey-based private detention company that operates the jail, has struggled to secure agreements to house inmates.

Revenue from housing inmates is needed to repay the $49 million in project revenue bonds that financed the jail’s construction.

The jail needs to be at 90 percent capacity to cover bond payments and operational expenses.

Cooper has called the jail a bad decision and suggests that some studies in 2008 predicted the current decline in inmates across the country.

“The jail market is overbuilt and was overbuilt in 2008 (when the court voted to construct the jail),” Cooper said. “Somebody is going to lose their shirts over it, and the question is, what are we going to do about it?”

Lewis rebuffs Cooper’s claims that the jail will not reach capacity. He said other counties have been visiting the jail and considering whether to send inmates here.

He maintains the county will not ultimately be responsible for paying off the bonds, though the county’s bond rating could suffer if they went into default.

The commissioners court approved a housing agreement to house prisoners from Dallas County, where officials anticipate a bed shortage.

That agreement awaits approval from the Dallas County Commissioners Court.

State budget cuts

While the jail remains a divisive issue between the candidates, they share concern about the impact of the upcoming legislative session on the county budget.

Speaking at the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas conference in Waco earlier this month, state Sen. Steve Ogden, R-Bryan, said the state could face a budget shortfall of up to $21 billion.

The shortfall could force legislators to make some deep cuts to several agencies and programs, Ogden said.

“We need to sit down and look ahead, figure out what’s going to go wrong when they do whatever they do down there, and how can we make it less bad for the county,” Cooper said. “The thing is to talk to the people that have the expertise, have good ideas about what we should do, then make a decision.”

Lewis said he was most worried that legislators could make significant cuts to funding for mental health and mental retardation programs.

That could mean fewer beds in mental health hospitals, forcing counties to place those patients in jails.

“It has a ripple effect,” Lewis said. “You put them in the jail, then it hikes up your jail population, and then there’s the cost to take of him as an inmate, then your jail medical costs increase because you have to treat the mental illness.”

Early voting begins Monday.

rdennis@wacotrib.com

757-5755

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About the candidates

Jim Lewis

64, incumbent

Political party: Republican

Occupation: County Judge

Residence: Mart

Experience: Has served as county judge for 20 years; was appointed Precinct 2 county commissioner in 1981, then elected to two full terms; began his career with the county as jail administrator for the sheriff’s office.

Ralph Cooper

62, challenger

Political party: Democrat

Occupation: Attorney

Residence: Waco

Experience: Chaired the steering committee that successfully campaigned for the passage of a $172 million Waco Independent School District bond election in 2008.