ONE COUNTY. ONE FUTURE.
VOTE MATT SALAZAR MARCH 3RD IN THE
DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY FOR HARRIS COUNTY JUDGE
MEET MATT
I grew up in Lubbock and Hereford, the son of a single mom who worked more hours than the day ever really held.
From her, I learned early that opportunity isn’t handed over - it’s earned, fought for, and recognized when it finally knocks.
I learned that what most people call luck is really just preparation waiting for its moment.
In 2009, I packed up my life and moved to Houston simply because I hadn’t been here yet - and because something in me knew the next chapter needed new soil. Before I turned twenty-five, I’d lived a few lifetimes: a missionary playing basketball in Belgium, a youth pastor, a father-figure to boys wrestling with the world and a general-contracting apprentice learning the dignity of building something that lasts.
I eventually graduated from the University of Houston with a degree in Political Science and a minor in Religious Studies - a pairing that, in hindsight, explains a lot about why I see people the way I do and leadership the way I do.
Since then, I’ve worked across nonprofits, government contracting, consulting, and now small business ownership. I’ve sold land all over this state. I’ve sat at kitchen tables and board tables. I’ve listened to ranchers, CEOs, parents, students, and folks who feel invisible to everyone but the world they’re trying to hold together. Those conversations - that full spectrum of humanity - shaped me far more than any résumé line ever could.
For nearly a decade, I’ve held back from public service because I know the cost it can place on a family. But lately, I haven’t been able to shake two truths:
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The world doesn’t fall apart because of bad people doing too much, but because of good people doing too little.
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One person can make a difference... and every person has an obligation to try.
I’ve led teams. I’ve managed crises. I’ve brought people together who swore they had nothing in common. I’ve watched this county - OUR COUNTY - look for leadership that doesn’t just speak well but serves well.
And I can tell you plainly: the familiar names stepping forward are not the answers Harris County deserves.
Because familiarity isn’t the same as goodness.
A name repeated isn’t a reputation earned.
Recognition isn’t reliability.
Being known doesn’t mean being right for the moment we’re in.
I’m running because leadership isn’t about being famous, it’s about being faithful to the work. It’s about competence over noise, duty over ego, and choosing service long after the spotlight moves on.
I’m not running to be something.
I’m running to do something - and to do it well.
ONE COUNTY. ONE FUTURE.
OUR COUNTY. OUR FUTURE.
ONE COUNTY
Harris County isn’t just where we live - it’s who we are. From Tomball to Clear Lake, Acres Homes to Pasadena, the Ship Channel to Cypress, we are a single, sprawling community stitched together by the work we do, the families we raise, and the futures we dream about.
But somewhere along the way, politics turned neighbors into demographics and communities into talking points. We got carved up into zip codes and voting blocs, as if we’re competitors instead of partners.
I don’t see a county divided... I see a county waiting to be reunited.
“One County” means something simple but radical: we lead by listening, not labeling.
We measure decisions by who they lift, not who they please.
And we remember that every person - no matter their income, zip code, party identity, or background - deserves a seat at the table where our future gets written.
This campaign isn’t about creating a new side. It’s about bringing people back to the center - the shared ground where common sense lives, where solutions beat slogans, and where community matters more than partisanship.
Texans have a long memory for what connects us: decency, hard work, honesty, and the simple belief that if your neighbor is struggling, you don’t step over them - you help them up.
“One County” is our reminder that we rise together, or not at all.
And I’m running because I believe Harris County is ready to rise.
THE PLAN
If “One County” is who we are, “The Plan” is how we move - deliberately, boldly, and with both feet on solid ground.
At the heart of the plan is Harris Starts: a new model for county leadership that breaks away from stale programs, scattered initiatives, and the political Band-Aids that pass for long-term thinking.
Here’s the truth:
Most government programs focus on symptoms - one grant here, one task force there, one election cycle at a time. They’re built to survive headlines, not to solve problems.
Harris Starts is different.
It doesn’t begin with bureaucracy... it begins with people.
It’s not a grant program or a buzzword.
It’s an engine.
A county-driven incubator designed to jumpstart community transformation at the neighborhood level.
What Makes Harris Starts Different?
1. It builds with communities, not for them.
Most top-down initiatives assume they know what a neighborhood needs before they ever set foot in it.
Harris Starts flips that.
We ask first, we partner second, and we fund third - not the other way around.
2. It invests in ideas that actually produce results.
Not pilot projects that die quietly.
Not programs designed to pad reports.
Harris Starts prioritizes what works:
– Local Apprenticeships
– Small Business Accelerators
– Neighborhood Safety Upgrades
– Childcare Access Expansion
– Senior Mobility Solutions
– and Community-led Design Projects
All evidence-based, measurable, and tied to outcomes that build generational momentum.
3. It breaks down silos.
Instead of 10 departments doing 10 different things with 10 different budgets, Harris Starts brings them together under one mission: helping families win.
4. It sets a timeline beyond the next election.
This is not for a two-year headline.
It’s for a hundred-year legacy.
It stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the 3 Generations Initiative because both are rooted in one simple belief: big futures require long runways.
5. It treats the county as a launchpad, not a liability.
We’re done being reactive.
Harris Starts is proactive... a spark.
A builder.
A catalyst for communities that are ready to grow but haven’t been given the match, the resources, or the voice.
Why this matters now?
Because Harris County is too big, too diverse, and too full of talent to settle for outdated systems and political posturing.
We need innovation that belongs to the people, not another round of “studies,” “reviews,” or “strategic frameworks” that get shelved.
Harris Starts is where vision meets action.
Where neighborhoods move from overlooked to empowered.
And where the entire county moves together - one community at a time.
This is how we build a county worthy of the next three generations.
Together.
On purpose.
For the long run.
one future
The future is up to us in Harris County — and that means widening our view, taking in every angle, and choosing to look through a lens that’s not stuck in yesterday’s fears, but fixed on tomorrow’s possibilities.
That’s why the 3 Generations Initiative matters. It’s our commitment to do something most governments never bother to do:
learn from the wisdom behind us, tell the truth about where we stand today, and build with the courage of people who know their work will outlive them.
Three generations — roughly a hundred years.
One horizon, shared by our grandparents, ourselves, and the kids who will inherit the decisions we make right now.
We’re not reinventing the wheel; we’re remembering who we are. Texans - especially Harris County Texans - have always carried all three tenses of time in our back pocket. We honor the past, we get to work in the present, and we refuse to be afraid of the future.
And look - we’ve done it before. Just down the road in Clear Lake, we put footprints on the moon. We turned “impossible” into a Tuesday afternoon. That wasn’t just innovation; that was a county choosing to think bigger than the moment, bigger than the noise, bigger than the typical political box.
It’s time for us to do that again.
Not as Democrats or Republicans, but as neighbors who believe Harris County can be the model for what American communities can be when they choose purpose over partisanship.
I’m not running to manage the status quo... I’m running to build the next era. And I believe we can do it. I believe we can lift our eyes, bring our people back to the table, and shape a future worthy of those who came before us and those who will come after.
I’ve got the vision, the steadiness, and the leadership to take us there, but only together can we build what lasts.