The Lexington Herald-Leader has begun posting their endorsements in the upcoming election. Here are three that were shared today.
House 45: Adam Moore (D) over Thomas Jefferson (R)
Jefferson has knocked on hundreds of doors and spoken to hundreds of voters since the primary. We salute him for his hard work and for his willingness to sit down with us in a frank and polite discussion of his very conservative views. But we think Adam Moore is a better fit for this purple Fayette/Jessamine district.
First of all, Moore has the viewpoint of a veteran who has served in trouble spots around the world, like Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa. One of the first things he’d like to do if elected is form a veterans’ caucus that could focus on the many issues veterans face when their service is over.
Moore started life as a Republican, but has become disenchanted with a party held hostage by the NRA and anti-abortion forces that seem to fly in the face of traditional Republicans’ small government philosophy. He favors commonsense gun laws like better background checks. “The Second Amendment is very important to me,” he said. “But we have to have responsible gun ownership.”
He would vote in favor of exceptions to Kentucky’s abortion laws for rape, incest and the life of the mother. “No matter how I feel about the issue, politicians should not tell women what to do with their bodies,” he said.
House 88: Cherlynn Stevenson (D) over Vanessa Grossl (R)
In five years in office, Rep. Cherlynn Stevenson has risen to a strong leadership position within the General Assembly’s small Democratic minority. She has stood out with bipartisan work on bills that legalized both medical cannabis and legalized gaming, two issues that will help multitudes of Kentuckians. She worked with Republicans to create a suicide prevention program for veterans and coverage for breast exams, while also speaking out against Republican plans to divert public dollars to private schools with Amendment 2.
But she is also willing to take on problems within her own party, such as her call for the embattled Rep. Daniel Grossberg, ensnared in an ethics case, to resign.
Kentucky needs more elected officials like Stevenson, someone who speaks for Kentucky’s most vulnerable while also finding ways to work across the political aisle. She will continue to support Gov. Andy’s Beshear’s campaign to fund early childhood education and support Kentucky’s beleaguered and underpaid teachers.
Senate 27: Molly Crain (D) over Stephen West (R-absent)
The Kentucky General Assembly is in the grips of a supermajority that is not good for anyone – Republicans, Democrats, independents, or regular folks. When one political party decides everything, debate is squashed and legislation is pushed through without discussion. This was true when Democrats ran the roost in Frankfort, and it’s true now.
Speaking of debate, we were looking forward to hearing from both candidates in Senate District 27 race between incumbent state Sen. Steve West (R-Paris) and challenger Molly Gene Crain. Sadly, West decided he did not need to face the questions of the Herald-Leader editorial board, which has a long-term policy that requires interviews for every endorsement.
His opponent, Crain, showed up, and proved she could be provide a much-needed voice in Frankfort. Her platform of the 4Fs — Families, Farms, Funding and Fixing Frankfort — gets away from the culture war battles the GOP loves to wage, and back to what she calls “kitchen table issues,” like fully funding public schools and making healthcare costs more affordable. Crain’s grandparents founded the Bluegrass Stockyard, so she had a bird’s eye view to the struggles of farmers trying to hold on to their land and businesses.
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