When Grayson Murray was asked what was most special to him about his father, Michael Murray, the 20 year old answered immediately. He’ll always remember his father as having a giving servant’s heart.
And driven by his father’s passion for helping others, Grayson decided to apply for the Franklin County Commission District One seat his father was elected to last year.
Michael died unexpectedly on May 4th, less than one year into the term of office Franklin County voters elected him to serve.
On Tuesday, Gov. Kay Ivey appointed Grayson to the vacant District One seat. Ivey said she saw the same spirit of service Michael Murray had in his son, and that was the driving force of her decision to appoint him.
“Commissioner Michael Murray was a humble, hardworking public servant who made a strong impression in his short time on the Franklin County Commission,” Ivey said. “It is clear the same spirit of service lives on in his son, Grayson.
“Grayson is driven, capable and ready to continue the work his father began. I am proud to appoint him to carry on that legacy,” Ivey added.
As he and the Murray family received visitors at his father’s visitation, Grayson said he repeatedly heard testimonials about how Michael Murray had helped so many others.
“It seemed like everyone had a story like that—where they needed him and he came through and helped them. My dad’s main strength was truly being a servant and he really loved helping people,” Murray said. “I remember people would come down to his shop and not have money to pay for a battery or something else on their car and he would say ‘go ahead and bring it in here’ and he’d put the battery on free of charge and let them go.
“He taught me that not everyone has all the money in the world and sometimes, it’s just better to help others and not make it about the money. Just let that go and make it about helping someone else,” Murray added.
Murray will be sworn into office Friday at 9 a.m., in the Franklin County Commission Annex, according to Franklin County Probate Judge Barry Moore.
“We received word Tuesday morning that Grayson was appointed and he will be formally sworn into office Friday morning. I look forward to working with him on the Franklin County Commission,” Moore said.
Murray, a 2023 Russellville High School graduate, is a junior at the University of North Alabama, where he’s majoring in Secondary Education.
It won’t be easy to balance full-time college with public office, but Murray said his father’s passion will be his primary motivation. Murray didn’t decide to apply for the appointment right away. The decision came a couple weeks after his father’s passing.
“It wasn’t a quick decision. There weren’t any quick decisions when everything was going on right after (his father’s passing),” Murray said. “Number one, our family had to process everything because it was so sudden.
“Then some people reached out to me about it a couple weeks after my dad died. I talked with my mom (Kathryn Murray) and decided to put my name in there and at least give it a shot. Once things settled down, I realized it would be an honor to finish what my dad started. Dad was very passionate about Franklin County, and I was lucky to have learned that same passion from him. I am looking forward to getting started in this role, and I want to thank everyone for the support I received to get to this point,” Murray added.
Alabama law mandates that vacancies on county commissions shall be filled by the governor, and the appointment shall expire at the next general election, which will be 2026.
If he decides to run for the District One seat, a decision Murray won’t make right away, he will have to run in the May 19, 2026, primary election, and again in the November 3, 2026, general election.
“That’s a decision I’ll make later. My primary concern is time. I know there’s a lot of campaigning to do and it takes a lot of time to campaign across the county,” Murray said. “I just want to come in and do the best job I can. I’m passionate about finishing the job my dad started.
“I’m ready to get to know the people I’ll be working with, getting trained on the job and getting settled in doing the best job I can. Later on, I’ll have to make that decision, but for now I just want to perform this job to the best of my abilities,” Murray added.
