ELLIS COUNTY – Ellis County Commissioner Lane Grayson, pct. 2, has withdrawn from the primary runoff election in May.
Grayson was vying for the open Ellis County Judge against former Ennis Mayor Kameron Raburn.
Grayson also resigned from his County Commissioner Precinct 2 seat as of May 1, according to a statement he made last week.
The Ellis County Press was sent a letter entitled “Commissioner Lane Grayson Announces Resignation from Office and Withdrawal from County Judge Runoff.”
Highlights of the letter included Grayson has formally notified Ellis County Judge John Wray of his intention to resign from office effective May 1.
Grayson also notified Ellis County Republican Party Chairman Randy Bellomy of his request to have his name withdrawn from the ballot for the Ellis County Judge Republican primary runoff election scheduled for May 26.
In a statement, Grayson said, “For more than a decade, it has been my great honor to serve the people of Ellis County. Public service is never simply a role one occupies – it is a trust, given by neighbors, friends, and families who place their confidence in you.
“I have carried that trust with deep gratitude every day for the past eleven years. Together, we have seen Ellis County grow in remarkable ways.”
He said he was proud of what the county commissioners have accomplished and mentioned “greater structure to our road improvements and made accessibility and transparency daily priorities.”
Grayson said his decision “had not come easily” while alluding to division, harshness, and personal attack that extends beyond disagreement and “into something far more troubling affecting not only those who serve, but the families who stand beside them. That is a burden I am no longer willing to ask my loved ones to carry.”
Grayson’s sudden withdrawal from the primary runoff race leaves his runoff opponent Kameron Raburn the winner.
However, it also meant the third candidate running for Ellis County Judge, Travis Smith, did not face a fair loss since without Grayson in the race it would have meant Raburn and Smith were running for the open seat with one fairly winning during the original primary election.
Raburn said late last week when asked about his win: “At this time, our campaign has received no official documentation on the status of my opponent’s withdrawal from the upcoming May 26 Republican primary runoff for Ellis County Judge. However, I do look forward to serving as your next Ellis County Judge.”
He did not send a second comment after the resignation officially circulated.
Grayson replied in a text late last week to The Ellis County Press when asking for a comment that he was out of town for the weekend and would be available for a statement this week.
He said, “Please don’t print rumors.”
With that request, I will say that there are rumors of his having an issue with a Grand Jury in McClennan County and hopes that he will address those rumors for himself.
For full transparency, The Ellis County Press has sent public information requests to the Ellis County and McClennan County District Attorney’s offices asking for “any and all records and documents related to any investigations, criminal complaints, whistleblower complaints related to Ellis County Precinct 2 and/or Ellis County Precinct 2 County Commissioner Lane Grayson during the time he has been an elected County Commissioner for Ellis County.”
When I spoke with Grayson, who has served as Ellis County Commissioner in Precinct 2 since 2015, regarding a donation misunderstanding made by Ellis County Judge Greg Wilhelm during early voting, he told me he did not know anything about a Grand Jury hearing.
The Ellis County Press did receive from a local resident a public information request that had been fulfilled including an invoice from Ellis County Precinct 2 to the City of Rice in Navarro County for $59,500, which was paid as “interlocal revenue” to the order Ellis County Road and Bridge Precinct 2.