Ryan Ray
Ryan Ray (Democratic Party) is running for election to the Texas House of Representatives to represent District 97. He is on the ballot in the Democratic primary on March 3, 2026.[source]
Ray was a member of the Crowley Independent School District in Texas, representing Place 5. He assumed office in 2012. He left office on May 26, 2022.
Ray completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Ryan Ray graduated from Crowley Independent School District. His career experience includes working as an attorney.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: Texas House of Representatives elections, 2026
General election
The primary will occur on March 3, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Democratic primary
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 97
Beth Llewellyn McLaughlin (D), Ryan Ray (D), and Diane Symons (D) are running in the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 97 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Beth Llewellyn McLaughlin  | |
 | Ryan Ray | |
| Diane Symons | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 97
Incumbent John McQueeney (R) is running in the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 97 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | John McQueeney | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
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2022
See also: Crowley Independent School District, Texas, elections (2022)
General election
General election for Crowley Independent School District, Place 5
Daryl Davis II defeated incumbent Ryan Ray and Diana Acosta in the general election for Crowley Independent School District, Place 5 on May 7, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Daryl Davis II (Nonpartisan) | 43.5 | 1,463 |
| Ryan Ray (Nonpartisan) | 31.9 | 1,075 | |
| Diana Acosta (Nonpartisan) | 24.6 | 827 | ||
| Total votes: 3,365 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2019
See also: Crowley Independent School District, Texas, elections (2019)
General election
General election for Crowley Independent School District, Place 5
Incumbent Ryan Ray won election in the general election for Crowley Independent School District, Place 5 on May 4, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Ryan Ray (Nonpartisan) | 100.0 | 2,817 |
| Total votes: 2,817 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Willie Pippen (Nonpartisan)
2018
See also:
General election
General election for Texas House of Representatives District 96
Incumbent Bill Zedler defeated Ryan Ray and Stephen Parmer in the general election for Texas House of Representatives District 96 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Bill Zedler (R) | 50.8 | 32,698 |
| Ryan Ray (D) | 47.2 | 30,360 | |
| Stephen Parmer (L) | 2.0 | 1,256 | ||
| Total votes: 64,314 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 96
Ryan Ray advanced from the Democratic primary for Texas House of Representatives District 96 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Ryan Ray | 100.0 | 6,446 |
| Total votes: 6,446 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 96
Incumbent Bill Zedler advanced from the Republican primary for Texas House of Representatives District 96 on March 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Bill Zedler | 100.0 | 7,945 |
| Total votes: 7,945 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Three of the seven seats on the Crowley Independent School District school board were up for by-district general election on May 7, 2016. Incumbent Ryan Ray defeated challengers Lizdelia Pinon and Eric Johnson Jr. in the race for the Place 5 seat. Place 6 incumbent Gary Grassia defeated challenger Leticia Gonzales. In Place 7, newcomer Lyndsae Benton ran unopposed after incumbent Sherri Whiting withdrew from the race.[2][3]
Results
| Crowley Independent School District, Place 5 General Election, 3-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Ryan Ray Incumbent |
42.05% | 587 |
| Eric Johnson Jr. | 29.01% | 405 |
| Lizdelia Pinon | 28.94% | 404 |
| Total Votes | 1,396 | |
| Source: Tarrany County, Texas, "Cumulative Report-Unofficial Results," accessed May 7, 2016 | ||
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ryan Ray completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ray's responses.
| Collapse all
Ryan’s commitment to our community is rooted in deep local ties. After attending law school in Fort Worth at Texas Wesleyan (now Texas A&M Law), he chose to raise his children in Crowley ISD—the same district where he served for 10 years as a Trustee. During his decade on the board, Ryan was elected four times and championed fiscal discipline, smaller class sizes, and the creation of a student-trustee program to give students a direct voice in leadership. His connection to the district is personal.
In Austin, Ryan will focus on fairly reducing property taxes, expanding Medicaid to bring our federal tax dollars home, and increasing public education funding to end the era of deficit budgets. He is a fierce advocate for the green energy industry and the full legalization of marijuana for adults. Outside of his professional life, Ryan and his family run a small animal sanctuary, reflecting his lifelong commitment to the well-being of his community and the environment.- As an entrepreneur who bootstrapped my way through school to build one of the state's largest property tax firms, I know the financial pressure Texas families are facing. I will fight for a $250,000 homestead exemption cap and meaningful rebates for renters—who are too often ignored in the tax conversation. To lower electricity bills, I will cut the red tape on green energy projects to increase supply and drive down costs. Finally, I will work to strictly regulate the insurance industry to stop the predatory rate hikes on our homes and cars. With a decade of experience on the Crowley ISD board, I have the fiscal expertise to hold the line on costs and ensure our economy works for every neighbor in District 97.
- Texas is at a breaking point, and we must stop treating our classrooms like political laboratories. I will fight to permanently end the push for private school vouchers that strip vital resources from our neighborhood schools. We need to get politics out of the classroom and focus on the fundamentals: fully funding our schools, reducing class sizes, and providing our teachers with the competitive pay and professional support they deserve. As a former 10-year Crowley ISD Trustee, I’ve seen firsthand how anemic state support forces districts into deficit budgets. It’s time to move past the political games and prioritize the 5.5 million Texas students who are the future of our economy.
- Expanding Medicaid is both a moral imperative and an economic "no-brainer." Texas remains a national holdout, leaving billions of our federal tax dollars in D.C. while our families pay the price through higher premiums and local hospital taxes. I will fight to bring that money home to insure one million Texans, stabilize our rural hospitals, and lower uncompensated care costs for everyone. Alongside healthcare security, we must restore reproductive freedom. Decisions about pregnancy belong to patients and doctors, not politicians in Austin. I am committed to ending extremist bans and codifying reproductive rights so that every Texan has the autonomy to make their own healthcare decisions.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2022
Ryan Ray did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2019
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ryan Ray did not complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.
2018
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ryan Ray completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ray's responses.
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
- Making sure that our public schools get the resources they need to be successful. - Working to reduce our local property taxes by having the State meet it's obligation to provide 50% of the cost of public education. - Fighting attempts to cut back on local control in Austin.
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?
I would say public education is the biggest for me, I have served on the Crowley ISD School Board and during my tenure we have seen funding at the State level that doesn't keep pace with the enrollment growth and inflation - meaning an increasing share of the burden falls on local property tax payers. I've also seen that our schools are largely doing pretty well, but we need to focus more resources on the neediest kids and right now the system is doing just the opposite. Texas can and should have the best education system in the world, we can do it, but we need new leadership in Austin to make that happen.
Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?
Pay it Forward was a great film that I think helped inform my political philosophy.
What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?
Being honest and keeping promises.
What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?
I'm an attorney and a fierce advocate for my clients, I would take that to my position as a State Rep. and be a strong advocate for the people of House District 96.
What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?
To represent the people of House District 96 in Austin in setting a budget, creating laws, and helping them deal with the States bureaucracy to handle their issues.
What legacy would you like to leave?
To help move Texas forward.
What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?
Probably the first significant historical event I remember is September 11th, I was 18 and just starting college. In fact my school was pretty close to the crash zone for flight 93. September 11th, taught me that we have to stay vigilant in our struggle against extremism but the aftermath also taught me that we can't simply label a whole people as an enemy, we need to find the root of the issue and address.
What was your very first job? How long did you have it?
I worked as a fast food server on campus while in College I only stayed a year, but I worked every year I was in school at various jobs.
What is your favorite holiday? Why?
Christmas, I love getting the family together to eat, the kids opening the presents, the Christmas Tree - the whole deal.
Every state besides Nebraska has two legislative chambers. What do you consider the most important differences between the legislative chambers in your state?
Right now it's quite simply that the Texas House of Representatives is the body which best represents the interests of Texans, while the Senate is clearly beholden to a small group of wealthy benefactors with extremist positions.
Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?
Absolutely, but at some point it can't go on forever. I don't believe our nation is or state are best served by having officials hold posts for decades but I do believe it's beneficial for our Representatives to have some experience in government.
What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?
Figuring out how to deal with our phenomenal growth while providing the people with the services they need.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
