12/20/2017 3:38 PM

Chris Daniel - District Clerk Harris County

Envelope No. 21415888
2017-84457 / Court: 189 By: Nelson Cuero
Filed: 12/20/2017 3:38 PM

CAUSE NO. ___________

DAN HUBERTY § IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF

§
Plaintiff, §
§
§
v. § HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS
§
PAUL SIMPSON, §
JAMES DICKEY, §
AND REGINALD CLYDE §
GRANT, JR. §
§
Defendant. § ________ JUDICIAL DISTRICT

PLAINTIFF’S ORIGINAL PETITION FOR VIOLATIONS OF THE ELECTION CODE

AND VERIFIED APPLICATION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND
TEMPORARY AND PERMANENT INJUNCTION

Plaintiff Dan Huberty files this Original Petition for Violations of the Election Code and

Verified Application for Temporary Restraining Order and Temporary And Permanent

Injunction.

Discovery Control Plan

1. Plaintiff intends to conduct discovery under Level 1 of the Texas Rules of Civil

Procedure 190.3.

Nature of the Proceeding

2. Reginald Grant, Jr. (“Grant”) is a candidate for the Texas House of

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Representatives, District 127. One of the qualifications for this position is that Grant must reside

within the district for six months, or since at least June 2017. Grant’s ballot application lists a

residence within the district. But this is not Grant’s residence. Recently discovered evidence

demonstrates that Grant has been residing outside the district since December 2016—well

outside the statutorily required minimum residency period. Grant is statutorily ineligible for the

position he seeks.
 3. Grant’s ineligibility has been brought to the attention of the appropriate

authorities within the Republican Party. The Harris County Republican Party has asked Grant to

respond to the allegations that he does not reside in the district. A temporary restraining order is

necessary to maintain the status quo so that Grant may respond and allow the party to determine

Grant’s eligibility and remove him from the ballot. (Or, in the unlikely event that Grant is found

eligible, a TRO will allow immediate judicial review of this important matter prior to Grant

being placed on the ballot.)

4. Finalization of the ballot is imminent. The Harris County Republican Party will

conduct a final ballot drawing for the 2018 primary at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, December 21. If

the party includes Grant in that ballot drawing and places his name on the ballot, it will be

including a person who is ineligible to run and cannot legally take the seat. Inclusion of an

ineligible candidate will cause significant harm to Dan Huberty—an undisputedly qualified

candidate—who is seeking this same position.

Parties

5. Dan Huberty (“Huberty”) is an individual residing in Harris County.

6. Paul Simpson (“Simpson”) is an individual and the Chair for the Harris County

Republican Party, and may be served with citation at his public mailing address at 7232

Wynnwood Lane, Houston, Texas 77008.

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7. James Dickey (“Dickey”) is an individual and the Chair for the Texas Republican

Party, and may be served with citation at his principal place of business at 211 E. 7th Street Ste.

915, Austin, Texas, 78701.

8. Reginald Clyde Grant, Jr. (“Grant”) is an individual and may be served with

citation at his residence, 10118 Wayward Wind Lane, Houston, Texas 77064.

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 Jurisdiction and Venue

9. Plaintiff seeks only equitable relief. This Court has jurisdiction under § 273.081

of the Texas Election Code. See also Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 65.021. Because Plaintiff

does not seek damages, for purposes of Rule 47, he seeks damages of less than $100,000. See

Tex. R. Civ. P. 47.

10. Venue is proper in Harris County under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code

§15.002 because it is the county of one or more of the defendants’ residences at the time the

cause of action accrued.

Background

11. Huberty currently holds the seat for the Texas House of Representatives District

127. He is the incumbent in the upcoming primary. Reginald Clyde Grant, Jr. (“Grant”)

challenges Huberty’s position in the 2018 election.

12. Grant’s campaign filings state his current residence is 29802 Huffman Cleveland

Road, Huffman, Texas 77336 (“Huffman”). Huffman is within District 127.

13. But Grant does not actually reside at Huffman. Instead, Grant resides at 10118

Wayward Wind Lane, Houston, Texas 77064 (“Wayward Lane”). Wayward Land is not within

District 127. Interestingly, though not singularly dispositive, Grant even lists his mailing address

on his campaign filings and other business records as Wayward Lane.

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14. Recently uncovered public records confirm that since at least December 2016,

Grant has resided at Wayward Lane.1 Because Grant must reside within the district for six

months prior to the deadline for him to file his application, see Tex. Elec. Code § 141.001(a)(5),

and because Wayward Lane is outside District 127, Grant is ineligible to run for this position.

1
See Exhibit 1, Letter to Paul Simpson regarding Grant Ineligibility.

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 15. Grant’s divorce filings—which are public records—demonstrate that he does not

live in District 127. Grant’s petition states that he and his wife ceased living together in

December 2016.2 At that time, Grant began living at Wayward Lane while his wife lived at

Huffman. Thus, since December 2016 Grant did not reside within the district—a conclusion

reinforced by the remainder of Grant’s divorce petition. For example, Grant specifically requests

a temporary restraining order that prohibits his wife from “excluding Petitioner from the use and

enjoyment of the residence located at 10118 Wayward Lane, Houston, Texas 77064.”3 Grant

would not need such relief unless he resided at Wayward Lane. Moreover, Grant recounts an

instance in April 2017 where he “stopped by [the] house on Huffman” to check on the dogs who

“were not acting their usual selves probably because I was not there.”4 Again, this sworn

statement by Grant confirms he was not residing at Huffman (at least by April 2017).

16. Moreover, HCAD records shed further light on Grant’s living situation. HCAD

records show that George Foreman owns Huffman.5 Upon information and belief, George

Foreman is Grant’s estranged wife’s father. Likewise, HCAD records show that Reginald Grant

owns Wayward Lane.6 Upon information and belief Reginald Grant, Sr. is Grant’s father. It is

logical to conclude that upon separating Grant resided in the property owned by his family and

his wife lived in the property owned by hers.

17. Other public records confirm that Grant does not reside at Huffman. An open
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records request to the Texas Education Agency (“TEA”) revealed that Grant, currently a

geography teacher in Aldine ISD, changed his address on July 9, 2017 with the TEA to reflect

2
Exhibit 1, at Exhibit D – Excerpts from Original Petition.
3
Id.
4
Exhibit 1, at Exhibit E – Petitioner’s Supporting Affidavit.
5
Exhibit 1, at Exhibit F – Harris CAD records for Huffman Property.
6
Exhibit 1, at Exhibit G – Harris CAD records for Wayward Lane Property.

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 Wayward Lane as his address. Teachers are required to provide TEA with current, accurate

information. See 19 Tex. Admin. Code § 230.91(c).

18. Grant has also made social media postings confirming that he resides at Wayward

Lane. On October 16, 2017, Grant tweeted a photo showing the tires had been stolen from his

truck, stating that he took the photo after he “[w]alked out the house” on his way to work.7 In the

comments to that photo, Grant states that is “over in Jersey Village.”8 Wayward Lane—not

Huffman—is in the Jersey Village neighborhood, outside of District 127.

19. Huberty brought this recently discovered information about Grant’s residence to

Simpson’s attention. The Harris County Republican Party then gave Grant until 12:00 p.m.

December 22 to respond to this challenge.9

20. As Huberty waits for Grant to respond and for the Harris County Republican

Party to make an eligibility determination, both the county and state branches of the Republican

Party continue to take steps towards finalizing the 2018 primary ballot.

21. Texas Republican Party Chair Dickey is set to certify the ballot at any time.

22. Harris County Republican Party Chair Simpson is about to conduct a drawing to

determine the order of candidates’ names on the general primary election ballot for Harris

County. See Tex. Elec. Code § 172.082. Upon information and belief, the ballot draw is

scheduled for Thursday morning at 10:30 a.m. Grant, despite his ineligibility, will appear on that
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ballot unless a temporary restraining order is issued to prevent the ballot draw from going

forward with an ineligible candidate.

7
Exhibit 1, at Exhibit H – Grant Twitter 10/16/17.
8
Id.
9
Exhibit 2, Email from

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 Cause of Action: Violations of the Election Code

23. Plaintiff re-alleges and incorporates by reference each of the foregoing paragraphs

as if set forth fully herein.

24. Texas Election Code § 273.081 provides that:

A person who is being harmed or is in danger of being harmed by a

violation or threatened violation of this code is entitled to appropriate
injunctive relief to prevent the violation from continuing or occurring.

25. This statue confers a private cause of action to seek an injunction for ongoing or

threatened violations of the Election Code. City of El Paso v. Tom Brown Ministries, 505 S.W.3d

124, 139 (Tex. App.—El Paso 2016, no pet.)

26. Grant’s application was defective when filed because Grant did not reside in

District 127 for at least the six months preceding the primary election filing deadline. Tex. Elec.

Code § 141.001. His application should have been rejected. Further steps taken to include Grant,

an ineligible candidate, would be a violation of the Election Code.

Temporary Restraining Order

27. Plaintiff re-alleges and incorporates by reference each of the foregoing paragraphs

as if set forth fully herein.

28. Plaintiff requests a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction

preventing, in the short term, the Republican Party from placing onto the ballot a plainly
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ineligible candidate. To obtain injunctive relief, the applicant must demonstrate (i) a cause of

action against the defendant, (ii) a probable right to the relief sought, and (iii) a probable,

imminent, and irreparable injury in the interim.

29. Grant was ineligible for District 127 as of the filing deadline of December 11,

2017. In fact, public records conclusively establish that Grant was not residing in District 127

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 since at least December 2016. Because Grant did not reside in District 127 for at least six months

prior to the filing deadline, Grant’s application did not comply with the applicable requirements

for making an application for a place on the general primary election ballot. Thus, Plaintiff has a

valid cause of action to have Grant declared ineligible and has a probable right to recover on that

cause of action.

30. The Republican Party is aware of the fact that Grant is ineligible. They have

requested that Grant respond to the allegations of his ineligibility by 12:00 p.m. on Friday,

December 22, 2017. Until the Republican Party has determined Grant’s eligibility (or

ineligibility), the ballot drawing, set for Thursday, December 21, 2017, and any other action to

proceed with finalizing the ballot should be restrained. If the party finds Grant ineligible, Grant

should not be included on the ballot. Alternatively, in the event that the Republican Party,

including Simpson, wrongfully determines that Grant is eligible, Plaintiff requests immediate

judicial review. This determination can be made at the hearing for temporary injunction, which

Plaintiff requests be held within seven days of this order.

31. Plaintiff would be irreparably injured if Simpson included Grant on the ballot

draw and certified that ballot draw’s results, despite being presented with conclusive proof of

Grant’s ineligibility. Plaintiff—an undisputedly qualified candidate and currently the incumbent

for District 127—would be forced to devote time, money, to defend his seat against a primary
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opponent who cannot legally be placed in office.

32. Moreover, State Chair Dickey’s certification of Grant for the 2018 Primary Ballot

would also cause irreparable harm. Dickey may be enjoined under Texas Election Code

§ 273.081. Under the Election Code, a candidate’s name shall not be certified for placement on

the general primary election ballot “if, before delivering the certification, the state chair learns

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 that the name is to be omitted from the ballot under Section 172.057.” Tex. Elec. Code

§ 172.028.

33. Huberty seeks a temporary restraining order preserving the status quo by

preventing Simpson and Dickey from taking steps to conduct the ballot draw on Thursday,

December 21, 2017, and from certifying Grant as a candidate for District 127 and placing him on

the 2018 Primary Ballot. Specifically, Plaintiff requests:

a. A temporary restraining order and temporary injunction enjoining Simpson and

his representatives, agents, servants, persons, present employees and all persons
acting in concert, participation or by, through or under the control of Simpson,
from conducting a ballot draw on Thursday, December 21, 2017, that includes
Reginald Clyde Grant, Jr. on the ballot.

b. In the alternative, a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction

enjoining Simpson and his representatives, agents, servants, persons, present
employees and all persons acting in concert, participation or by, through or under
the control of Simpson, from conducting a ballot draw on Thursday, December
21, 2017.

c. A temporary restraining order and temporary injunction, ordering that Dickey and
his representatives, agents, servants, persons, present employees and all persons
acting in concert, participation or by, through or under the control of Dickey, is
immediately enjoined from certifying Grant’s name for placement on the general
primary election ballot until Huberty has exhausted his administrative or judicial
right of review.

34. Plaintiff does not wish to delay the progress of the 2018 primary election. Within

one week or less, the Harris County Republican Party will have made a decision as to whether
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Grant is eligible or not. Therefore, Plaintiff requests that the Court issue a temporary restraining

order and set this matter for a hearing on a temporary injunction within one week of the issuance

of the temporary restraining order.

35. Plaintiff is willing and able to post a bond.

Prayer for Relief

Dan Huberty respectfully requests that:

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 (a) The Court enter:

a. A temporary restraining order and temporary injunction enjoining Simpson

and his representatives, agents, servants, persons, present employees and all
persons acting in concert, participation or by, through or under the control of
Simpson, from conducting a ballot draw on Thursday, December 21, 2017,
that includes Reginald Clyde Grant, Jr. on the ballot.

b. In the alternative, a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction

enjoining Simpson and his representatives, agents, servants, persons, present
employees and all persons acting in concert, participation or by, through or
under the control of Simpson, from conducting a ballot draw on Thursday,
December 21, 2017.

c. A temporary restraining order and temporary injunction, ordering that Dickey

and his representatives, agents, servants, persons, present employees and all
persons acting in concert, participation or by, through or under the control of
Dickey, is immediately enjoined from certifying Grant’s name for placement
on the general primary election ballot until Huberty has exhausted his
administrative or judicial right of review.

(b) Defendants be cited to appear and answer herein and show cause why a temporary
injunction should not be issued according to the terms requested herein;

(c) Upon hearing, pending a trial on the merits, the Court order a permanent injunction
prohibiting Grant from running in the 2018 election for the Representative of District
127;

(d) The Court award Plaintiff all other relief at law or in equity to which it may show
itself justly entitled.
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 Respectfully submitted by:

GARDERE WYNNE SEWELL LLP

By: /s/ Jeffrey S. Davis

Jeffrey S. Davis
State Bar No. 00783936
Mike Stafford
State Bar No. 18996970
Katharine D. David
State Bar No. 24045749
Philip J. Morgan
State Bar No. 24069008
Ben Stephens
State Bar No. 24098472
2000 Wells Fargo Plaza
1000 Louisiana Street
Houston, Texas 77002
Phone: (713) 276-5500
Fax: (713) 276-5555
jdavis@gardere.com
mstafford@gardere.com
kdavid@gardere.com
pmorgan@gardere.com
bstephens@gardere.com
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CertifiedDocumentNumber:77894725-Page11of11
 I, Chris Daniel, District Clerk of Harris
County, Texas certify that this is a true and
correct copy of the original record filed and or
recorded in my office, electronically or hard
copy, as it appears on this date.
Witness my official hand and seal of office
this December 22, 2017

Certified Document Number: 77894725 Total Pages: 11

Chris Daniel, DISTRICT CLERK

HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS

In accordance with Texas Government Code 406.013 electronically transmitted authenticated

documents are valid. If there is a question regarding the validity of this document and or seal
please e-mail support@hcdistrictclerk.com