Longtime Kosciusko County Commissioner Ron Truex said that he unknowingly moved outside of the district he represents and will resign Thursday night as a result.
The situation came to light over the weekend when Truex was informed that he might have moved outside of the middle district.
He immediately sought advice from the local Republican Party to determine if he could legally represent the middle district.
He said he was advised by Kosciusko County Republican Chairman Mike Ragan that he’ll need to resign and return salary received since he moved.
Truex, 67, said he’ll formally announce his resignation Thursday when the county council meets at 7 p.m.
Truex said he was told by Ragan that Republican officials will soon organize plans for a caucus to fill the void.
Truex, president of Creighton Brothers, said he and his wife, Mindy, moved about 5 miles from their home to a residence on Crystal Lake Road in early July.
The home is just west of a district line that separates the middle and southern districts.
Because his new residence sits almost squarely in the middle of the county, the thought that he might have moved out of the district was one “I never dreamed of.”
“I should have looked and I should have known,” Truex said Wednesday morning. “I have other things I think about, I guess.”
Truex said he’s not challenging the circumstances and admits, “I made a mistake.”
A portion of the southern district juts north into the middle part of the county and just west of Warsaw.
The middle district includes the city of Warsaw, the southern part of Plain Township to the north and three townships to the west: Etna, Prairie and Harrison.
The couple’s new residence was constructed by his wife’s grandfather nearly 70 years ago.
Given the opportunity to move into the house, Truex said they would not have changed their minds even if they knew it would place him outside of the district.
Truex was re-elected last year to a fifth term and had made it known that he did not plan to run again.
He said he looked forward to the idea of rounding out a career with the county after three more years with the three-person board.
“It’s bittersweet. I wanted to go out on my terms,” he said.
Truex’s seat is the latest that will be filled by the party caucus process. In less than a year, caucuses have been used to replace Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine and councilman Brad Tandy, both of whom resigned, and County Council President Bob Sanders, who died unexpectedly.
