John Christian Wray (born November 20, 1970) is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician. He served as a member of the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

for the 10th district from 2015 to 2021. Wray is a member of

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

. He lost the special election race for district 10 on September 28, 2021.Svitek, Patrick
Brian Harrison wins Texas House seat after beating fellow Republican John Wray, who used to hold the seat
''

Texas Tribune ''The Texas Tribune'' is a news website headquartered in Austin, Texas. It aims to promote civic engagement through original, explanatory journalism and public events. Its website and content in various delivery platforms serve as an alternativ ...

'', September 28, 2021.

Early life and education

Wray graduated from

Waxahachie High School Waxahachie High School is a public high school in the city of Waxahachie, Texas, United States and classified as a 6A school by the University Interscholastic League (UIL). It is a part of the Waxahachie Independent School District located in ce ...

in 1989. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

Career

He is a former

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Waxahachie and past member of the Waxahachie City Council. He practiced law for six years in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas, prior to returning to Waxahachie. He is the co-owner of Town Square Title, a title company. John, was first elected in 2014 to represent Texas House District 10. In July 2019, Wray publicized that he would not run for re-election for district 10, of the Texas State House of Representatives. In a news release he stated that, "these elected jobs are not meant to be lifetime positions".Pollock, Cassandra
John Wray announces he will not seek reelection
''

, July 3, 2019.'' Two years later on July 29, 2021, Wray announced his candidacy for district 10 in a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

to replace

Jake Ellzey John Kevin "Jake" Ellzey Sr. (born January 24, 1970) is an American politician and former military officer serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 6th congressional district. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a me ...

, who vacated the district seat after winning he

2021 Texas's 6th congressional district special election The 2021 Texas's 6th congressional district special election was held on May 1, 2021. The seat became vacant after incumbent Republican Ron Wright died on February 7 of COVID-19. Ron Wright's widow, Susan Wright from Arlington, who was endo ...

two days prior.

Elections

Wray won a

runoff election The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...

on May 27, 2014, against T. J. Fabby with 6,031 votes (52.9 percent) to 5,363 (47.1 percent), for the right to succeed the retiring Republican Representative

Jim Pitts James R. Pitts (born January 1, 1947), known as Jim Pitts, is an American state politician and lawyer who served in the Texas House of Representatives from 1993 to 2015. He was the chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee for four ...

, who had held the seat since 1993. In the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

held on November 6, 2018, Wray retained his House seat for a third term. With 44,601 votes (70.3 percent), he defeated

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Kimberly Emery, who polled 17,405 votes (27.4 percent). A

Libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...

, Matt Savino, polled another 1,453 ballots (2.3 percent). In 2021, Wray announced his candidacy for the

District 10

to replace

, who vacated the district seat after winning Texas's 6th congressional district special election.Svitek, Patrick
Special election to fill former state Rep. Jake Ellzey's North Texas seat set for Aug. 31
''

, August 6, 2021. Wray was endorsed by Texans for Lawsuit Reform. The special election was held on August 31, 2021, and Wray placed second with 36 percent of the vote with 4,031 votes and Brian Harrison placed first with 41 percent of the vote with 4,613 votes. He and Harrison faced each other in a runoff electionSparks, Hayden
Brian Harrison, John Wray Head to a Runoff for Texas House Seat to Replace Congressman Jake Ellzey
''The Texan'', September 1, 2021. which he lost against Harrison 55.38% to 44.62%.

Personal life

Wray and his wife, Michele, have two children.

References

External links

Campaign website

State legislative page

John Wray at the Texas Tribune
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wray, John (Texas politicians) 1971 births Living people Politicians from Dallas People from Waxahachie, Texas Politicians from Houston Republican Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Texas city council members Mayors of places in Texas Texas lawyers Waxahachie High School alumni Texas A&M University alumni University of Texas School of Law alumni 21st-century American politicians American United Methodists People from Hillsboro, Texas Candidates in the 2021 United States elections