Joe Hyde Officially Announces Bid for County Judge

His platform consists of four elements: 

Fix the criminal justice crisis that impacts San Angelo. Hyde added that this is a statewide crisis happening in counties across the state caused by the Covid-19 shutdowns and mandates.

“We need a strong leader who will foster a collaborative approach from all 27 elected county officials to get the court dockets moving before the crime rate becomes a problem for all of us,” said Hyde.

Promote Tom Green County for new business and foster a pro-business environment that encourages the private sector to thrive and create jobs. He said he will recruit more industrial and commercial enterprises that will grow the cumulative value of the county’s tax base. This will reduce the pressure on residential property taxpayers. 

Hyde claims he will lower county tax rates and protect the taxpayer from rapid land inflation — measured by rapidly rising appraised property values — that can negatively impact the budgets of residential, ag, and business property owners everywhere the county. Hyde said he will avoid debt or large capital investments by the county until the economic environment improves while also advocating a conservative approach to spending in county budgets. 

When facing future challenges, Joe Hyde said he will shoot straight and will never lie to you. Hyde is a 1986 graduate of Texas A&M University. He served in the US Air Force and Air Force Reserves as an instructor pilot with over 6,000 hours in B-52 and T-38 aircraft. He founded the first Internet Service Provider in Del Rio while still in the military. He moved to San Angelo after selling that company and before he held executive positions at Verizon Business, The Dallas Morning News, Salem Web Network, and then as the Director of Technology for The Sensis Agency. He launched his own tech company in San Angelo in 2010.

That company, Hyde Interactive, created the highly successful local news website called San Angelo LIVE! that became Hyde’s central focus for the past 8 years.

“The experience of reporting about local government gives me a wide breadth of knowledge about what makes our county tick and how it interconnects with the city, the school districts, Goodfellow Air Force Base, and Angelo State University," said Hyde. 

Hyde lives in Precinct 4 outside the city limits with his wife Judy. The couple has three grown children: Shelby, Hayden and Reagan.