WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — The race for Houston County Sheriff is now up to five candidates. This week, the first Democratic candidate qualified for the race. His name is Arthur Harris.
The city of planes and trains is his home, and he grew up spending a lot of time at Memorial Park.
"I was out here every weekend, every time," Harris said.
There, he played for the Warner Robins Jet's baseball team.
"There was a lot of great men in this community who kind of molded my life a little bit," Harris shared.
He thinks the youth could use the same strong guidance.
"We've got to get our youth under control," Harris said.
Now Harris helps youth through refereeing high school sports, but he's looking to help them through sheriff-led programs.
"I'm going to have some special people who come and work for the Sheriff's department, who are not law enforcement officers, who have been in the streets themselves but made great success out of it. I got one person in mind, a professional baseball player who can get out here and relate to our children," Harris said.
His priorities are not only youth-focused.
"Elderly people can not rest in peace in their homes, kids with behavioral problems are walking the streets," he shared.
Harris says he wants to create a stronger deputy presence.
"I would like to bring back, not necessarily community policing but have policeman ride neighborhoods," Harris said.
He said he wants to work to have community forums and meetings between departments.
"I'd like to form a county-wide drug squad where everybody meets," Harris said.
He's not just a referee, Harris says; he worked in law enforcement about 30 years ago.
"I policed for about four years at the City of Warner Robins and about 25 years at the Houston County Sheriff's Department," Harris said.
He said before his law enforcement career, he also served two years in the U.S. Army.
Harris says he's ready to serve Houston County and keep it a safe space.
He says from now until November, he will be out in the community speaking to people, and he looks forward to meeting the community.
Harris will be the only name on the Democratic ballot in the May primary. In November, he'll challenge the winner of May's Republican primary.