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.
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]
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]
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]
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.