RICHMOND – Democrats questioned, and Republicans criticized, the Ray County Commission regarding canceled plans for political gatherings at the Eagleton Center. Eastern Commissioner Allen Dale, a Democrat, weeks earlier had told fellow Democrats they could not use the center for a political meeting. “I was told about a month or so ago that we couldn’t use the Eagleton Center, couldn’t rent it out, because of the COVID thing, which I completely agree with,” Democrat Cindy Hewitt said prior to the Oct. 21 commission meeting. The commission in March voted to protect seniors from the virus by closing the meeting space in the Senior Center part of the Eagleton Center. Dale told Hewitt the center would not be available to the public until after Jan. 1. Democrats instead wore protective masks and met outdoors at a park, Hewitt said. Later, Western Commissioner Jerry Bishop, a Republican, told fellow party members they could use the center for a post-election event. When Hewitt and other…