Chuck Gray (Arizona politician) explained

Chuck Gray
State Senate2:Arizona
District:19th
District2:19th
Term Start:2003
Term End:2006
Term Start2:2007
Term End2:2011
Birth Date:20 January 1958
Birth Place:Mesa, Arizona, U.S.
Spouse:Connie Jones
Party:Republican
Children:5
Occupation:Retired Police Officer / Entrepreneur
Profession:Politician, Businessman
State House:Arizona

Charles Dale Gray (born January 20, 1958) is an American author and politician who served as a member of the Arizona House of Representatives and a member of the Arizona Senate from 2003-2006 and 2007-2011, respectively.[1] During his tenure in the Arizona Senate, Chuck served as the majority leader of the Republican caucus. Before entering politics, he was a police officer for the city of Mesa, Arizona.[2] Chuck is the author of Living the American Dream, a book published in 2013.[3] He is the father of five children and currently resides in Queen Creek, Arizona.

Early life

Chuck Gray was born and raised in Mesa, Arizona. At the age of 19, Chuck served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Spain where he learned to speak fluent Spanish. After serving as a missionary, Chuck attended Mesa Community College, where he met his future wife, Connie Jones. They were married and are now parents of five children and multiple grandchildren.[4]

Career

Law enforcement career

In 1990, Chuck fulfilled his lifelong dream of becoming a police officer upon joining the Mesa Police department, where he served for 10 years. As a police officer, Chuck worked as a patrol officer, a field training officer, a detective, as well as a translator for the department due to his knowledge of Spanish. After leaving Mesa Police Department, Chuck took on a full-time position with an internet company that he had founded in 1997—selling automotive accessories around the world.[5]

Political career

In 2002, Chuck decided to run for the Arizona House of Representatives. He received the second-most votes, behind Gary Pierce, and advanced to the general election, where he and Gary Pierce were elected to represent Arizona's 19th district in the House of Representatives.[6] He was re-elected in 2004.[7]

In 2006, Chuck ran for and was elected to serve in the Arizona Senate.[8] He was re-elected in 2008.[9] During his time in the Arizona State Senate, he served as the majority leader of the Republican caucus.[10]

In January 2020, Chuck announced his bid for Pinal County Supervisor, touting his experience in the Arizona Legislature and vision for SanTan Valley.[11]

Electoral history

Note: For each of the elections described above, no Democratic candidates filed to run. Further, Arizona House districts are multi-member districts, meaning that the top 2 vote receivers for each party advance to the general election and the top 2 vote receivers win the election.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Session laws, State of Arizona, 2003 Volume 1, Forty-Sixth Legislature, First Regular Session, Chapters 1 to 247 . State of Arizona . December 27, 2018.
  2. Web site: Senate Member. www.azleg.gov. 2019-01-03.
  3. Web site: Living the American Dream - Kindle edition by Chuck Gray. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.. www.amazon.com. 2019-01-03.
  4. Web site: Senate Member. www.azleg.gov. 2019-01-03.
  5. Web site: Senate Member. www.azleg.gov. 2019-01-03.
  6. Web site: Arizona House of Representatives elections, 2002. Ballotpedia. en. 2019-01-03.
  7. Web site: Arizona House of Representatives elections, 2004. Ballotpedia. en. 2019-01-03.
  8. Web site: Arizona State Senate elections, 2006. Ballotpedia. en. 2019-01-03.
  9. Web site: Arizona State Senate elections, 2008. Ballotpedia. en. 2019-01-03.
  10. Web site: Senate Member. www.azleg.gov. 2019-01-03.
  11. Web site: Home Page. Chuck Gray for Pinal County Supervisor. en-US. 2020-01-14.