Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls said Tuesday he will wait until 2020 to throw his hat in the ring for a Congressional seat. Nehls was the keynote speaker Tuesday at the Fort Bend County Chamber of Commerce discussing the state of crime in the county.
After the talk, the Star asked Nehls about his decision. He said last week he was “seriously considering,” competing as a Republican in the primaries against U.S. Rep. Pete Olson for the 22nd Congressional District seat. He said he would make the announcement Wednesday.
After the Chamber speech, Nehls walked around the room visiting with several members of the audience and spoke briefly with members from Olson’s office also attending the event.
Then he told the Star, “I’m waiting; I’m not running. The polls are favorable. But Trevor (Fort Bend County Constable and Troy’s twin brother) would have to resign. This affects on his family and the people in his office, we’re better off waiting until 2020.”
According to state law, if Nehls announced he was running for the Congressional seat, he would have to immediately step down as sheriff. Nehls said his brother would run for sheriff, which meant he, too, would automatically have to resign as constable.
Both brothers would have been unemployed until the 2018 election. This decision allows them to remain through the end of their terms.