Voter Empowerment
Secretary of State meets citizens in Madison County
Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes held her final town meeting last night in Madison County, and KFTC members were there to talk about expanding voting rights and ways to increase voting.
56th District Special Election in 2 weeks www.KentuckyElection.org
There is a special legislative election coming up in two weeks on Tuesday, June 25th in the 56th House District, which covers Woodford County plus parts of Franklin and Fayette Counties.
We've sent surveys out to the candidates so that we can communicate their answers out far and wide and they're now online at www.KentuckyElection.org ! There are also links to candidate sites, voting location information, and more. So please share this link with people you know in the district.
Note that 56th District candidate Lyen Crews has not yet responded to the candidate survey. Please feel free to contact his campaign and encourage him to respond. We're eager to post his answers along with the other candidates' stances.
We're also sending a mass mailing to voters in the district plus phone banks, field work and social media work to reach thousands of voters and help them cast an informed vote.
Unfortunately, turnout is often low in special elections, but KFTC members vote and the election might be decided by just a few votes, so each one matters.
For KFTC members and friends who live in or near the district can get involved in some of our upcoming events:
- Candidate Form - Tuesday, June 18th at Midway College at 7:00 p.m. We need volunteers to help us pass out survey responses.
- Phone Banks - Saturday, June 22nd from 2 p.m. – 5 p.m. and on the evening before the election on Monday, June 24th from 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. We'll be calling from the Central Kentucky KFTC Office at 250 Plaza Dr. Lexington, KY 40503.
- Election Day Field Work - Tuesday, June 25th from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. with a base location in Versailles in order to encourage people to go to the polls, direct voters, hold signs, run a sound car, and maybe even offer folks a ride to the polls. Location and details will be announced closer to election day.
And again, please visit and share the link to www.KentuckyElection.org
Change in felons voting rights sought
Shawnika Gill won’t get a chance to vote in the state of Kentucky unless the governor says she can.
Voting Rights Coalition Meeting
We also have a statewide Voting Rights Coalition meeting coming up on Wednesday, June 19th from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Voting Rights Updates
We’re continuing to advance our campaign to restore voting rights to former felons who have served their debt to society – through field work, citizen lobbying, and other actions.
Here are a few highlights from recent weeks:
- Victory in Virginia! - In national news, the Republican Governor of Virginia Robert McDonnell took some big steps to restore voting rights to former felons by executive pardon. The measure excludes Virginians convicted of more serious crimes including some drug related crimes (about 40% total). It’s also not a blanket measure, so former felons still need to be identified individually to get their rights back, but it’s still a big step forward. This most recent move leaves Kentucky arguably farther behind than any other US state in having a navigable re-enfranchisement process. You can learn more here, here, here, and here.
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