For your consideration: Gonzales Co. Sheriff’s race

The race for Gonzales County Sheriff is in full swing now with yard signs and advertisements seen across the area. Three Republican candidates are looking for your support in the contest that could be decided as early as March 1.

Matthew Atkinson is one of those men.

“The sheriff’s office needs to be a very forward thinking and progressive agency as far as continued training and getting any available resources we can use,” said Atkinson as he laid out his plans for the department should he come away the winner.

Atkinson is a 1986 graduate of Gonzales High School. He started off life with the United States Navy, serving six years and participating in Operation Earnest Will and Operation Desert Storm. After continuing education at Austin Community College, his law enforcement career began in 1996 with the Gonzales Police Department where he worked as patrol officer and patrol sergeant. He also worked with the Luling Police Department and counts 2,500 hours of continuing law enforcement education to his credit. 

Atkinson is currently employed by the Gonzales County Sheriff’s Office as a chief investigator, rising through the ranks from patrol deputy, deputy investigator and sergeant investigator.

Now, he believes it is time for him to be the county’s new top law enforcement officer.

“After a lot of discussion with my family and friends, I just decided that I think I’m ready,” he said. “I’m the right person for now to lead us into the future. I think I have a diverse enough background that bodes well for that position.”

He counts the support from his wife of 18 years, Cheryl, as a deciding factor. They have two sons that attend school in Gonzales, Ancel and Quinn.

Atkinson says that he enjoys being in law enforcement. 

“It feels good when you help somebody,” he said. “It’s about being able to be a part of doing something positive. And I think that law enforcement is a positive profession. It’s not getting a lot of that in the press these days — unfortunately — but it’s a positive and noble profession.”

When it comes to what he sees as the future of the department, no big changes are apparent in his mind. He considers the sheriff’s office like a functioning family, though sometimes it has its dysfunctions. But, better relations with the community are at the top of his list. Seeing what folks’ concerns are in Thompsonville to Waelder to Nixon are his priority. Engaging people in the community engages them with you, he said, and they want to be listened to.

As he explained, it’s just making sure you’re active in the community and doing everything you can to prevent crime, not just reacting to it. He also credits his relationship with other elected county officials as reason why he should get the job.

“I’ve been fortunate enough the past couple of years to be in that [sheriff’s office] budgetary process to learn it and understand how it works, to do presentations in commissioner’s court regarding statistics as far as the jail.” He said. “I think that’s the first thing you have to do, you have to get along. You have to get along with the commissioners and the county judge and everybody else.”

But now and until March 1, Atkinson will be knocking on doors and talking to citizens in the county, just being himself. 

“I believe that I have the personal qualities and professional experience that makes me the best candidate for Gonzales County Sheriff,” he said. “I am committed to providing a standard of leadership that would ensure all the citizens of Gonzales County get the best service and protection they deserve.”