Puzzling lawsuit by Byron Henry and Jim Herblin responding

 Dear Friends,

In an email on May 28, 2026, CC GOP party chair Byron Henry told the precinct chairs in the CC GOP that he had filed a temporary restraining order (TRO) against some precinct chairs.  On May 29 the party Executive Director sent all the PCs a copy of the TRO.  Reading the TRO we discovered that Byron Henry sued three precinct chairs:  Rachel Elliott, Jim Herblin, and Lee Breckenridge-Moore.  The TRO has an underlying lawsuit and the complaint was about an EC meeting called for June 1, when we had a meeting already scheduled.  Rachel Elliott sent the call for the meeting, but the lawsuit also named  Jim Herblin, and Lee Breckenridge-Moore.  That was puzzling because Lee and Jim did not have their names on the call-for-meeting.  Lee Breckenridge-Moore is an effective and hardworking PC that the Establishment has tried repeatedly to remove as an HD Chair.  It is as though the Establishment wants to punish Lee for being an effective leader.    Jim Herblin almost defeated Byron Henry in their contest for party chair.  Also, Jim Herblin has publicly called for Byron Henry's resignation, as described here:  Collin County Chair Byron Henry Asked to Resign, https://voteforcanright.blogspot.com/2026/02/collin-county-chair-byron-henry-asked.html.

Since Rachel issued the call-for-meeting without Lee's or Jim's names on the call, it doesn't make sense that Byron sued Lee and Jim.  It almost seems like Byron sued Lee and Jim to punish them for being leaders in the party.  Suing precinct chairs seems anti-Republican.

Also puzzling was that Terry Wade some years ago called a meeting in the same fashion as Rachel Elliott.  Byron Henry was the party General Counsel then and he did not sue Terry Wade.  I wrote about this event in this blog post:  When Terry Wade Removed Mark Reid, https://voteforcanright.blogspot.com/2026/06/when-terry-wade-removed-mark-reid.html

It is shocking to see the party chair suing precinct chairs.  All the Chairman needed to do was attend the meeting, take charge, and declare a lack of quorum or ask for a motion to adjourn the meeting.  I do not see the need to sue precinct chairs.  It seems like Lawfare.  Maybe someday I will investigate this matter further.  For now I will simply include below the contents of an email sent by Jim Herblin about the lawsuit.  This is important to all Republicans because the position of Party Chairman is on the ballot and all Republicans can vote for him.

Thank you for your attention to this troubling episode.  I question the health of our CC GOP party.

Robert

Here is a key statement from the email below:  Our Chairman used his party title to endorse his own law partner in a local election

Email sent previously by PC Jim Herblin about the TRO

On Tue, Jun 30, 2026 at 4:45 PM Jim Herblin  wrote:

To: All Collin County Republican Precinct Chairs

Re: The Truth About the TRO Filed Against Three of Our Own

 

Fellow Precinct Chairs, you deserve a full and honest account of what has transpired over the past several weeks within our party. What follows is a factual, chronological record — and it is deeply troubling.

 

May 2, 2026 — A Conflict of Interest Ignored 

Chairman Byron Henry publicly endorsed Frisco mayoral candidate Mark (https://markhill4mayor.com/about/) — his own law partner at the firm Henry Hill Firm LLC (https://henryhilltx.com/about/) — and did so using his title as CCGOP Chairman.  A personal endorsement is one thing.  Using the Chairman's title to lend party credibility to his business partner's campaign is another. See the attached photo and judge for yourself.

 

May 4, 2026 — A Precinct Chair Silenced

At the May EC meeting, Precinct 137 Chair John Donovan attempted to raise the topic of a potential endorsement in the Frisco mayoral runoff during the "New Business" agenda item — precisely the time such matters are meant to be raised. Chairman Byron Henry ruled him out of order.  I encourage every precinct chair to consult our parliamentarian and determine whether that ruling was proper.  I believe it was not.

 

May 7, 2026 — A 12–0 Vote, Ignored

The Candidate Committee met and voted unanimously - 12 to 0 - to endorse Rod Vilhauer in the Frisco mayoral runoff (June 13, 2026). The result was formally forwarded to Chairman Byron Henry with a request to call a special meeting. He refused, claiming the Candidate Committee meeting was improperly held. A unanimous endorsement vote, set aside by one man.

 

May 15, 2026 – Chairman Squashes any Special Meeting

 

Endorsement consideration for the Frisco mayoral runoff should have been allowed at the May 4 EC meeting. Despite a groundswell calling for a Special Meeting, Chairman Byron Henry killed the idea — see attached e-mail in PDF (Gmail - EC Special Meeting Request.-2.pdf).

 

May 22, 2026 — The Chairman Goes Silent

Despite a regularly scheduled Executive Committee meeting on the books for June 1, 2026, Chairman Byron Henry failed to issue the required 10-day meeting call. No explanation. No cancellation vote by the EC. Simply — silence.

 

May 22, 2026 — Precinct Chairs Follow the Rules

Precinct 126 Chair Rachel Elliott did what the CCGOP Bylaws expressly authorize. She called the June 1 meeting under Article V, Section 2 of our bylaws, which states:

 

"In the event the County Chair cancels or fails to call a regular meeting, one fourth (1/4) or 50 of the Precinct Chairs, whichever is fewer, may, by written demand, call the regular meeting. Notice of such meeting shall be sent by surface or electronic mail to all members of the Executive Committee at least 10 days prior to the meeting."

 

The Chairman cannot unilaterally 'move' a scheduled EC meeting without the body's approval—and that approval never happened. Worse, shifting June 1st to June 22nd would move the meeting across biennium’s entirely. Since no vote occurred, the June 1st meeting was simply canceled.

 

The notice went out. It was timely. It was proper. It was by the book.

 

May 24, 2026 — The Chairman Responds with Accusations

Rather than acknowledge the Bylaws, Chairman Byron Henry sent an e-mail calling the meeting call "fraudulent", claiming the agenda was "made up" and accusing precinct chairs of “hijacking” the CCGOP. He declared that no official business would be conducted and no minutes recorded.

 

None of that is supported by our rules.  Article V, Section 2 exists precisely for this situation.  Precinct chairs followed it to the letter. Calling that "fraud" is not only inaccurate — it is an affront to the chairs who were simply doing their job.

 

May 28, 2026 — Three Precinct Chairs Sued for Following the Rules

This is where things took a serious turn. The Collin County Republican Party (Plaintiff) — our own party — filed suit (without EC approval) and sought a Temporary Restraining Order against three precinct chairs: Rachel Elliott, Jim Herblin, and Lee Breckenridge-Moore.

 

The notice given to Defendants (Elliott, Herblin and Breckenridge-Moore) was, to put it plainly, a failure of basic due process. Elliott was not properly noticed at all. Herblin and Breckenridge-Moore received notice 15 minutes before the 1:00 PM hearing. None of the three were able to attend. The hearing proceeded without them.

.

The petition alleged the June 1 meeting was improperly called. Again — read Article V, Section 2. The meeting was called in full compliance with our Bylaws.

 

June 1, 2026 — Justice Denied at the Emergency Hearing

Defendants requested an emergency 9:00 AM hearing and came prepared — with evidence, documents, and testimony — to demonstrate that the June 1 meeting was properly called. Plaintiffs told the court they were not prepared for an evidentiary hearing. Notably, they had been prepared enough four days earlier to file a lawsuit and obtain a TRO while the defendants were not even in the room.

 

The court declined to hear evidence. No testimony was taken. No documents were reviewed. The TRO was upheld on the strength of Plaintiffs' pleadings alone — pleadings that conflict directly with the plain language of our own Bylaws.

 

June 9, 2026 — Plaintiffs Walk Away

Less than two weeks after filing suit, Plaintiffs nonsuited the entire case — dismissing both the petition and the TRO. The case is over. Three precinct chairs were sued, dragged into court, and denied the opportunity to present evidence — for calling a meeting that was fully authorized under our rules. And then the party simply walked away. Again, no EC vote taken.

 

What This Means for All of Us

 

Take a step back and look at the full picture:

 

·        Our Chairman used his party title to endorse his own law partner in a local election.

·        At the May 4 EC meeting, Chairman Byron Henry repeatedly — and improperly — ruled Precinct Chair 137, John Donovan, out of order.

·        A unanimous Candidate Committee endorsement was dismissed without legitimate basis.

·        A properly noticed EC meeting was called in compliance with the Bylaws — and the response was a lawsuit against three of our colleagues.

·        No EC vote was ever taken to sue — or non-suit — the three precinct chairs.

·        A proposed rules package — which Chairman Byron Henry helped develop — was quietly pulled (EC meeting of June 22) when it became clear it would not pass.

 

Our Bylaws exist to protect every precinct chair and to ensure this party is governed by its members — not by any one person. What has taken place in recent weeks is a test of whether those rules mean anything. Every precinct chair should read Article V, Section 2, review the facts above, and decide for themselves.

 

We are stronger than this, and our party deserves better. We cannot forget this - or it will happen again. Any precinct chair who wishes to discuss these matters further is encouraged to reach out directly.

 

Jim Herblin

Precinct Chair #240

 

May 15, 2026 email from B Henry below