Two candidates have challenged three-term Precinct One Commissioner Virgil Holland in the March 4 Republican primary.

Wood County sheriff’s investigator Justin Bowring of Yantis and Mayor Randy Dunn of Quitman will be on the ballot along with Holland.

Bowring, 42, is lifelong resident of Yantis and Wood County, graduating from Yantis High School.

He and wife Heather have six children and another on the way in June, named Boston. Their school-age children also attend Yantis schools and include Dallas Bowring, Rowdy Bowring, Noah Bowring, Ryder Strong, Everleigh Bowring and Katy Bowring.

Bowring graduated from the East Texas Police Academy and has received continuing education for his police officer license.

He has been a mechanic and equipment operator and worked for Precinct One on the road and bridge crew.

He served as the police chief for the Yantis school district.

Dunn, 70, has been a Wood County resident since 1986. He retired in 2016. After attending Texas Tech, he was a self-employed farmer in Lubbock County from 1976-86 and was with the Texas Farm Bureau from 1983-2016, three years as an agent, 2.5 years as manager and 27.5 years as district manager.

He has served on the Quitman city council since 2008, eight years as alderman, two as mayor pro tem and the past five as mayor.

He and his wife of 48.5 years, Teresa, have two daughters, six grandchildren and a bonus great-grandchild.

Dunn has been on the Quitman Development Corp. board for 17 years including multiple years as an officer. He served on multiple committees and leadership roles with the First United Methodist Church in Quitman, where he was a member for 36.5 years, and has been with the Grace Global Methodist Church for a year.

He served on the North District UMC finance committee for seven years and was a UMC Texas conference delegate for six years.

Dunn is first vice president of the East Texas Council of Governments executive board where he has been a member for four years and serves on the board of the Quitman Memory Health Life Center, a project of the Wood County Health Care Foundation.

Virgil Junior Holland, 67, is a lifetime resident of Wood County.

Prior to becoming commissioner, he worked at Rockwell, as an oilfield roughneck, owned and operated a dairy for 17 years and worked for Automatic Gas for 18 years.

He attended Yantis High School and graduated from a fully-accredited online high school and has 192 hours of continuing education in various aspects of county government and commissioner operations.

He and his wife Debbie, an educator of 28 years, have been married for 50 years and have three children, Chance Holland, Hayley Russell and Chris Holland, and nine grandchildren, Ty Holland, Tanner Holland, Hannah Holland, Cannin Peppers, Ronin Russell, Riley Russell, Dallas Russell, Ryder Holland and Addilynn Holland.

Virgil Holland serves on East Texas Housing Finance Corp. board and has served on the UT Health Advisory Committee and the Quitman ISD Health Advisory Committee and is an NRA member and a Baptist.