Chad Ray

What the office can decide

Oklahoma’s county commissioners act collectively as the county’s chief administrative body. Their responsibilities include county property, purchasing and bids, claims, roads and bridges, and parts of the budget process. Board decisions require majority action. Ray can make or second motions and vote, but his district title does not give him unilateral authority to approve a county contract. Other elected county officials retain their own statutory functions, and the county excise board has final funding authority. Those divisions matter when identifying who proposed a project, approved an expenditure or controls a particular service.

Career & public service

1. 2022

   First documented county campaign

   Osage News lists Ray among District 3 Republican candidates.

   Osage News: Assistant chief candidate files for county commissioner seat ↗
2. June 2026

   Primary election

   July reporting identifies him as the June primary winner without a November challenger.

   Bartlesville Radio: Chad Ray sworn in as District 3 commissioner ↗
3. July 2026

   Entry into office

   Local reporting records his swearing-in to complete the unexpired term.

   Bartlesville Radio: Chad Ray sworn in as District 3 commissioner ↗
4. August 2026

   Regional representation

   INCOG roster identifies him as Osage County’s District 3 commissioner.

   INCOG board roster ↗
5. October 2026

   Recorded county decisions

   Commission minutes document road applications, courthouse contingency authorization and a preservation donation.

   Osage County commissioners: October5 proceedings ↗Osage County commissioners: October13 proceedings ↗

People, institutions and the relationships between them

Following the connections

Each step below represents a documented relationship. Dates and roles belong to the individual links; a path can span different periods.

Documented relationships

6 documented relationships · Historical and current roles remain distinct.

Courthouse costs and a deferred budget record

The October 13 minutes record Ray moving approval of a $19,104.47 courthouse remodeling modification funded from project contingency. All three commissioners voted yes; the minutes state that the overall budget remained unchanged. This was authorization to use an existing contingency allowance, not evidence of a larger total project budget or money paid to Ray. At the same meeting, he seconded postponement of the fiscal 2026–27 budget publication sheet and books after the clerk reported a publication error requiring correction. The recorded outcome was a deferral on October 13; it does not establish the disposition of later meetings.

County government and regional representation

Chad Ray is Osage County’s District 3 commissioner and a member of INCOG’s board representing the county. The county’s current office page and the regional roster independently identify him in those roles. His responsibilities place him at two levels of government: a three-member county commission that makes administrative and spending decisions, and a regional council that helps local governments plan and obtain assistance. Membership in the regional body does not transfer the county commission’s legal powers to him individually.

A return to the ballot and an early start in office

Osage News named Ray among the Republican candidates filing for District 3 in 2022. The June 2026 voter guide issued by Awake Oklahoma and Grassroots Today described that earlier bid as unsuccessful. He returned to the race in 2026. Bartlesville Radio’s July 3 report says he won the June primary, faced no November challenger and had just been sworn in to complete the unexpired term following Charlie Cartwright’s death. This was an actual entry into county government during 2026, rather than merely an election for a future term. The current official county roster corroborates that he is serving.

A documented electoral connection

Awake Oklahoma and Grassroots Today selected Ray as their preferred candidate for District 3 in their June 16, 2026 voter guide. That is a specific, public endorsement by the guide’s publishers. It establishes a connection between his candidacy and an organized voter-information effort, but does not establish that he belonged to either organization, received a contribution from either one, or coordinated the guide’s production. The distinction keeps an endorsement from becoming an unsupported account of organizational control.

Road projects at the application stage

On October 5, 2026, Ray seconded a motion to advertise a 2.25-mile asphalt overlay on Anderson Road in District 3. All three commissioners voted yes. At the same meeting, he seconded the county’s application for a fiscal 2027 REAP grant for a 2.5-mile overlay on New Prue Road, from County Road 1701 toward Frontier Shores; that motion also passed unanimously. These records establish procurement and application decisions. They do not establish that construction was completed or that the grant was awarded.

How the regional funding connection works

INCOG administers the state’s Rural Economic Action Plan program in its region. Its program description says the regional board approves projects using need and merit criteria, with funding categories that include transportation and community development. Ray’s membership on that board and his county vote on a REAP application connect two stages of public administration. They should be tracked separately: the county authorizes its application, while the regional process determines assistance. The available records do not show Ray deciding his own district’s award, and the application vote alone cannot establish preferential treatment.

A public vote on local historical preservation

At the October 5 meeting, Ray seconded the donation of objects from the former Osage County Hospital to the Osage County Historical Society Museum for display and preservation. The unanimous action included equipment and architectural material. The museum is a Pawhuska institution housed in the former Santa Fe depot. This documents a county decision linking a former public facility to local historical interpretation. It does not establish that Ray is a museum trustee, donor in his private capacity or employee.

Check the record

Sources & corrections

Research checked 2026-10-30. Roles and financial figures retain their source dates. Sections appear only when supported material is available; an omitted section is not a finding that no such relationship exists.

1. Oklahoma State University — duties of elected county officials ↗

   primary · Checked 2026-10-05

   Board of County Commissioners section: majority board action, property, bids, roads, budget-board distinction, excise-board authority.

2. INCOG board roster ↗

   primary · Source date 2026-08-17 · Checked 2026-10-25

   Direct October25 retrieval: August17,2026 roster lists vice-chair Chris Benge, Tulsa County. Distinct from Christian Bengel.

3. Osage County: Commissioner District 3 ↗

   primary · Checked 2026-10-30

   Current named commissioner and institutional portrait. Bio contains no verified career or education chronology.

4. Bartlesville Radio: Chad Ray sworn in as District 3 commissioner ↗

   independent-reporting · Source date 2026-07-03 · Checked 2026-10-30

   Ty Loftis; July3 report of Thursday swearing-in to unexpired term following Charlie Cartwright death. No November challenger.

5. Osage News: Assistant chief candidate files for county commissioner seat ↗

   independent-reporting · Source date 2022 · Checked 2026-10-30

   2022 candidate filing account names Ray among Republican District3 candidates. Other candidates legal histories not attributed to Ray.

6. Awake Oklahoma and Grassroots Today: June16 voter guide ↗

   organizational-self-description · Source date 2026-06-16 · Checked 2026-10-30

   PDF page23: District3 Our Choice Chad Ray; describes unsuccessful2022 race. Endorsement only; not evidence of membership, contributions or coordination.

7. Osage County commissioners: October5 proceedings ↗

   primary · Source date 2026-10-05 · Checked 2026-10-30

   Four scanned pages visually inspected. Page3 resolutions29379 Anderson Road advertisement and29382 New Prue REAP application. Page4 resolution29390 hospital objects donation. ApprovedOctober13.

8. Osage County commissioners: October13 proceedings ↗

   primary · Source date 2026-10-13 · Checked 2026-10-30

   Four scanned pages visually inspected. Page3 resolutions29409 payment approval and29410 contingency modification8; page4 budget publication deferral. ApprovedOctober19. Amount USD19,104.47 is authorized contingency modification, not personal income or enlarged total project budget.

9. INCOG: Community and Economic Development ↗

   primary · Checked 2026-10-30

   REAP program state funding, rural eligibility and INCOG Board approval under needs/merit criteria. No award to Ray or his district inferred.

10. Green Country Tourism: Osage County Historical Society Museum ↗

    primary · Checked 2026-10-30

    Pawhuska museum in former Santa Fe depot. Identity checked against county donation recipient; do not confuse Kansas Osage County historical society.