Ricardo A. Samaniego was sworn in as the El Paso County Judge on January 1, 2019. Born and raised in El Paso, Texas, Judge Samaniego is a proud graduate from Thomas Jefferson High School, and was recently named the 2019-2020 Thomas Jefferson Outstanding Ex. Judge Samaniego has 3 graduate degrees from the University of Texas at El Paso, and New Mexico State University, which includes a Master’s Degree in International Economics and Public Policy from the University of Norte Dame. Before taking public office, Judge Samaniego worked in both the private and public sector. His professional background is all-encompassing as he has experience as a Human Resource’s Consultant, a clinical therapist, and as a teacher. Judge Samaniego takes pride in his family’s roots as they have a long record of public service to El Paso, Texas, the community they all love and call home. As your County Judge, he is committed toward working on initiatives related to mental health, veteran services, County infrastructure, economic development, and most importantly community outreach.