Cleburne realtor Richard Sikes filed on Friday to compete in the Johnson County Clerk race.
The incumbent, County Clerk Curtis Douglas, a Republican, recently announced he would not seek re-election.
Sikes will face Becky Williams, an employee of the county clerk’s office who has served as the Johnson County Commissioners Court Clerk for the past four years, in the March 2 Republican primary.
The victor of that contest will emerge as the winner of the November race because no Democratic candidates have filed for the office.
Sikes praised Douglas for his service to the county, a legacy Sikes said he hopes to carry on.
“I would be honored to follow in the footsteps of Curtis Douglas, one of the great county clerks of Johnson County,” Sikes said. “He has modernized the office and brought it into the 21st century. I intend to continue the tradition of competent service and efficiency. As technology increases and funds become available, I would like to take the office to the next level.”
Sikes said his business experience, conservative values and strong work ethic will help him serve county residents.
“I am new to politics but have been blessed to have observed some of the great public servants of Johnson County,” Sikes said. “It makes me proud to live in a country where I can participate in the free election process to select the best person for the office.”
Sikes, a fifth-generation Johnson County resident, graduated from Cleburne High School.
He earned degrees from Tarrant County Community College and Texas Christian University and studied intercultural communication at Regents College in London.
Sikes is a certified mediator and a licensed real estate sales agent with Keller-Williams Realty of Johnson County, experience he said prepares him for the county clerk duties of recording real estate deeds and liens and preparing pleadings for the county courts.
“I’m optimistic the local economy will grow in the new decade,” Sikes said. “And I look forward to making the clerk’s office even more responsive to our communities’ legal and business needs. I have successfully started several small business, and my goal is to manage the taxpayers’ dollars just like I would manage funds in my own business.”
Sikes has also worked in his family’s business, Sikes & Associates P.C. Attorneys at Law as a petroleum landman and pipeline right-of-way negotiator. Before that, he worked 10 years in the sales management and marketing department at Supreme Corporation.
“Customer service will be one of my top priorities,” Sikes said. “I am seeking the Republican nomination because I passionately believe in limited government, free enterprise and local control of tax dollars.
“I was inspired by President Reagan to embrace the idea of individual responsibility, with government operating as a vehicle to serve the public.”
Sikes said his main goal, if elected, will be to increase budget efficiency while increasing public satisfaction with services provided.
Sikes participated in several civic and Cleburne government organizations through the years including the Cleburne Rotary Club, the Buffalo Creek Association, Layland Museum Advisory Board and the Cleburne 4B Economic Development Corporation.
He serves on a 4B subcommittee formed to develop the Cleburne Railroad Museum.
“My father, Lawrence Sikes, worked in the shops as a machinist for the Santa Fe railroad for 34 years,” Sikes said. “I’m an avid amateur historian, and the preservation of Johnson County’s historic records is a solemn responsibility that I will take seriously.”
Sikes’ wife, Kimberly Sikes, is a Cleburne attorney.
The couple have four children and attend Field Street Baptist Church, where Sikes serves as an usher captain.
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