HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN)— Incumbent Gary Cutler for the Hays County Sheriff race was re-elected on Election Day.

Cutler received 53,451 (51.0%) votes, while challenger Alex Villalobos had 51,423 (49.0%).

In March, both candidates swept their primaries. Hays County reported that Kyle City Councilman Alex Villalobos received 74.35% of the votes in the Democratic primaries, beating his opponent by nearly 10,000 votes.

Current Hays County Sheriff Gary Cutler received 77.15% of the votes in the Republican primaries, beating his opponent by almost 8,000 votes.

Cutler has been sheriff since 2010. He first joined law enforcement in 1974 with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office and climbed the ranks to captain. While with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, he held various positions including jailer, criminal investigations detective and Captain of Investigations and Process. Cutler remained captain until his retirement in December 2000.

In 2001 Cutler joined the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office as sergeant in the Major Crimes Division. He was then promoted to Lieutenant. In 2004 Cutler began to work for Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, where he was investigator until he became Hays County sheriff in 2010.

Villalobos has more than 14 years of law enforcement experience. He joined the Texas State University Police Department in 2007, becoming lieutenant and chief of staff in 2016. Villalobos resigned from the department in 2018.

Villalobos was elected as Kyle City Council member in November 2017. In 2019, he also became Chief of Staff for the Hays County Judge Office.

The sheriff office is a four year term. A Texas sheriff is a licensed peace officer and their duties include enforcing state laws and serving warrants and civil papers.