Lexington elected official resigns, leaving vacancy on city council
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- Council member Denise Gray will resign July 31 to lead an organization in Milwaukee.
- Lexington's mayor has 30 days to appoint someone to the vacancy.
- Gray said media response to 2024 assault claims affected her future in government.
City council member Denise Gray announced her resignation from Lexington’s governing body Wednesday, effective July 31.
Gray, originally elected in 2022, represented Lexington Fayette Urban County Council District 6, which includes part of East Lexington between New Circle Road and Interstate 75, including Hamburg and Bryan Station.
Her term was set to end in 2027.
Gray said she will relocate to Milwaukee, where she take on the role of executive director of Nia Imani Family, Inc., which provides long-term transitional housing and resources for young women leaving foster care.
She said her biggest accomplishment during her time on the council was expanding youth programming in the city.
She announced she would not seek reelection earlier this year, citing treatment by the news media following her sexual assault allegations against former council member Brenda Monarrez last year.
“The lack of empathy and disregard for my humanity during that time was not only hurtful, but it was also a painful reminder of the barriers Black women too often face when we speak truth and stand in our power,” she said at the time.
“Despite that treatment, I continued to show up and serve with courage, compassion and commitment. But I will not pretend it did not affect me, it did.”
Gray endorsed Christian Wellmann, a representative for the Central Midwest Carpenters, as her replacement. He advocates for fair labor laws and practices across the construction industry, and has lived in the Council District 6 ince 2017.
Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton has 30 days after Gray’s last day to appoint someone to fill the open council position.
The Lexington Fayette Urban County Council can block her nomination with a 2/3 majority vote. They have 15 days from her appointment to make that vote.
The council and mayor don’t always agree on filling vacancies. Earlier this year the council denied the mayor’s choice to serve on the Board of Adjustment.
In 2024, council denied Gorton’s appointment for the city’s Planning Commission. The mayor did not submit another name within the appointment window, and the commission filled the vacancies themselves.
Sexual assault influenced Gray’s decision
Gray accused Monarrez of sexually assaulting her in August 2024. Gray applied for and was granted a restraining order, called an interpersonal protection order, alleging Monarrez was sexually aggressive toward her on two occasions over the prior three years.
The judge who granted the three-year restraining order found that sexual assault did occur between the women. Sexual assault under state statue also includes sexual abuse.
No criminal charges have been filed against Monarrez.
As a result of the sexual assault claims, Monarrez was banned from entering city hall and Democratic Party events. Monarrez, who represented District 4, lost her seat to Emma Curtis in November 2024.
Despite everything, Gray said she wouldn’t change a thing about her time serving on city council.
“I didn’t realize that when a person becomes an elected official, that people think you automatically lose your humanity. People automatically assume that you no longer have feelings. But the only thing that has changed is that I have a title,” she said.
“I was a leader before I had a title. I’ll be a leader after I have this title. I will always be a leader, and I’ll always be the same person I was before — a person who will do the work and speak up for underrepresented people every single day, even when it’s hard. I will show up, even though there’s a predator on the screen.”
Gray’s parting advice
As her parting advice, Gray urged her colleagues on the city council to prioritize securing a new government center because city employees “deserve a safe, adequate facility to come and work in.”
The city has talked about purchasing a new city hall building for over a decade. The Herald-Leader reported the city entered exclusive negotiations with the Lexington Opportunity Fund in April to establish a new building.
Negotiations could take months. If a deal is not reached, the city could choose another company or close the bid and go back to square one.
The council set aside $43 million to fund a new government center years ago, but that money can be used for other things if the city decides not to move forward with a new building.
Gray also called on the mayor to be more intentional when selecting people to serve on boards and commissions, to have more diverse representation that better reflects the people who live in Lexington.
A 2024 study by CivicLex, a local nonpartisan research and engagement organization, said the median age of Lexington’s boards and commissions, 51, is significantly higher than the median age of the city, 37.
There is also disproportionate representation by council district, with Districts 4, 7, 8 and 11 being underrepresented.
This story was originally published July 23, 2025 at 10:03 AM.