Nine months before Port Arthur voters go to the polls to elect a new mayor to lead the city by the sea, two potential candidates have announced intentions to seek the position that will be left vacant when Deloris “Bobbie” Prince leaves office because of term limits.
Derrick Freeman, currently serving as Position 7 City Councilman, said is plans to run for mayor.
Also taking steps to be on the May 2016 ballot is Harold Doucet, a former District 4 City Councilman.
Doucet, on Friday, filed an appointment of campaign treasurer form. The designation allows a candidate to begin collecting campaign funds.
Doucet said he will likely make a formal announcement in October.
“I have not formally announced, but am planning on running,” he told The News Tuesday.
Freeman has not yet designated a campaign treasurer, but is gearing up to run in what he hopes will be a race that sticks to those issues important to the city of Port Arthur.
“I would hope to see a clean-run race. In the last couple of Port Arthur elections people have lowered the bar. We are going to do everything we can to keep the election above-board,” Freeman said.
Freeman is self-employed with Marketing Innovations and Network Development, or MIND. He has studied at Liberty University and the University of Texas at El Paso majoring in political science.
Doucet was elected to the District 4 City Council set in 2011. Two years ago he made a bid for the mayoral seat, but was defeated by Prince.
Doucet is retired 30 years from the U.S. Army where he was Command Sgt. Major.
He is a native of Port Arthur and a 1968 Lincoln High School graduate. He attended college at Texas A&M in Kingsville.
Though it’s early in the process, Freeman said it is not too early for those who are not registered to vote to do so.
Port Arthur residents in the last few elections have not gone to the polls — a practice that Freeman said he hopes will not be repeated in May.
“I want everyone to look forward to the election and get out and vote. If the citizens were to elect me, I want it to be the opinion of more than just the 2 percent of the citizenry that voted in the last couple of elections,” Freeman said.
E-mail: sherry.koonce@panews.com
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