The State of Texas has stepped into a rapidly escalating dispute in Lubbock County, asking a district court to reinstate Jason Corley as Precinct 2 Commissioner after County Judge Curtis Parrish declared the seat vacant and appointed a replacement. The conflict centers on a constitutional provision that can automatically remove certain elected officials from office if they announce candidacy for another position with more than 13 months remaining in their current term.
At issue is whether Corley became a “candidate in fact” for the U.S. House District 19 seat prior to Dec. 1—more than 13 months before the end of his commissioner term. Parrish argues he did; Corley and now the State of Texas say he did not.
Potter County Attorney Scott Brumley, representing the state after Lubbock County District Attorney Sunshine Stanek recused herself, filed a motion to intervene in the lawsuit between Corley and Mark Meurer, who Parrish appointed last week to fill the Precinct 2 seat. Corley was reelected on Nov. 8, 2022, and began his four-year term in January 2023.
A hearing is scheduled for Friday in the 237th District Court before Senior Judge Patrick Pirtle on Corley’s request for a temporary restraining order. If granted, it would bar Meurer from acting as commissioner while the case proceeds.
Parrish maintains that Corley effectively triggered the constitutional resignation requirement in mid-November. He cited a Nov. 12 email in which Corley announced an exploratory committee for Congress and used campaign-styled materials, including logos, email domains, and a P.O. Box reflecting “Corley for Congress.” Parrish believed those elements constituted campaign expenditures under the Texas Election Code, making Corley a candidate. He also pointed to a Nov. 15 text message sent to him by Corley, which Parrish said aligned with a provision defining a candidacy as a “statement of definite intent to run for public office and the soliciting of support by letter or other mode of communication.”
Corley, however, disputes that interpretation. His lawsuit argues that he did not become a candidate until Dec. 2, when he publicly announced his run and officially filed his application for the March Republican primary. By that date, only one year and 28 days remained in his commissioner term—short of the 13-month threshold needed to trigger automatic removal.
Meurer, now serving under Parrish’s appointment, is represented by attorney Kristen Vander-Plas Lafreniere.
Brumley’s petition to intervene supports Corley’s position, stating that a qualifying act of candidacy “would have had to occur on or before Dec. 1, 2025.” The petition adds: “The Lubbock County Judge had no lawful authority to find or declare that Jason Corley had automatically resigned and thereby created a vacancy… Since no vacancy in the office existed, the appointment of Mark Meurer… was unlawful and void.”
Three Republicans—Justin Martin, M. Trey Newton, and Kevin Pounds—have filed to run for the Precinct 2 seat in the upcoming primary.
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