We won. I keep typing that and staring at it. On May 1, 2026, Jefferson Circuit Judge Brian C. Edwards ruled in Sobel v. Cameron that Kentucky’s statutory definition of “human being” as beginning at fertilization was unconstitutionally vague. With this ruling, the Court recognized that Kentucky’s laws created real fear and real confusion. The […]
Like many Kentuckians, state Sen. Chris McDaniel was horrified when he found out that Gov. Matt Bevin had pardoned a group of hardened criminals just as he was leaving Frankfort. The Ryland Heights Republican was so horrified that he embarked on a seven-year journey to make sure it couldn’t happen again. “There were lots of […]
Former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin on Friday was sentenced to jail for contempt of court — again — after he ignored a judge’s order to appear in person at a hearing involving his estranged son, Jonah Bevin, who is seeking support. Bevin attended the Jefferson Family Court hearing by Zoom, telling Judge Angela Johnson he […]
Dozens of drinking water utilities in Kentucky disconnected ratepayers who owed less than $50 among other “unreasonably punitive” practices and policies by utilities, a new report analyzing drinking water utility disconnections found. Staff at the Letcher County-based Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center who authored the 16-page report wrote that 114 drinking water utilities — from small, […]
Kentucky communities are grappling with the prospect of hyperscale data center projects — massive, sprawling warehouses of power-intensive computer clusters — potentially moving in. A lot more of them could be on the way. Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities, the state’s largest utility, told the Kentucky Public Service Commission in March that 11 […]
Earlier this month, Ebola touched the Commonwealth of Kentucky, if only indirectly. Dr. Peter Stafford, who completed his residency at the University of Kentucky School of Medicine in 2018, was diagnosed with Ebola and flown to Germany for treatment. Dr. Stafford had been working as a physician and missionary in the Democratic Republic of Congo, […]
“To be educated is to be a better person.” –Retired Clinton County High School principal David Warinner, in his invocation at the groundbreaking for a new high school ALBANY, Ky. – The rap on rural Kentucky is that it’s a swath of largely backward places that don’t value education and where the main export is […]
Kentucky officials are facing a second lawsuit over a new law to make Kentucky State University a polytechnic institution. Filing the case in Franklin County Circuit Court last week, a group of anonymously identified students allege that Senate Bill 185 violates the Kentucky Constitution. The students argued that if the law is implemented, it could […]
In 1860, Dr. William Sneed, who had been the chief surgeon at Kentucky’s penitentiary, warned of any “effort to make the inmates a source of revenue for the State.” Flash forward 166 years to a story in the Louisville Courier-Journal reporting that eight Kentucky county jails were holding 1,100 immigrants on behalf of the federal […]
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will be the keynote speaker at the Kentucky Democratic Party’s Forward Together Dinner in August. KDP announced Whitmer’s appearance Tuesday. She is the vice chair of the Democratic Governors Association and serves with DGA Chair Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. Beshear praised Whitmer in a press release, saying she “expanded access to […]
As of April 2026, Kentucky county jails are holding 1,079 prisoners for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Who are these ICE detainees? What conditions are they living under in our state? At least nine Kentucky jails have contracts to house federal ICE detainees. As of April 2026, ICE classified only 26% of these […]
U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie has filed to run for his current House seat in 2028 after losing to a Republican challenger endorsed by President Donald Trump last week. However, the congressman says he still hasn’t made a decision to seek another office yet. In a Monday post on X, Massie posted a copy of paperwork […]
Over the past several decades, rural Kentucky has faced significant changes. In Eastern Kentucky, a shrinking tax base, population loss, and the decline of long-standing industries has made resilience an ever-changing challenge. Through it all, our communities have adapted and searched for new ways to build a stronger, more diverse economy. Increasingly, a new crisis […]
The soldiers returning from victory in World War II launched a new era of American optimism. The country was united and the economy was strong. With the help of the G.I. bill, these veterans got jobs, bought homes and started families in record numbers. The resulting baby boom is the largest generation in U.S. history. […]
Kentucky’s primary whirl is over, and with it, the careers of some politicians, at least for a little while. (We’re already hearing banter about Congressman Thomas Massie running for governor, or even president.) But elections have more than winning and losing candidates; they also reflect winning and losing ideas. Here are some of mine from […]
Even though he lost his reelection bid to Congress Tuesday night, U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie’s supporters signaled they’re ready for his next campaign. Shortly after the Associated Press called the race for Massie’s opponent, President Donald Trump’s candidate Ed Gallrein, Massie took to the stage in a packed ballroom at the Marriott Hotel near the […]
A swath of incumbent county judge-executives lost their primary elections, some by wide margins, failing to secure their political party’s nomination Tuesday in counties both large and small stretching across Kentucky. In all, 18 incumbent judge-executives lost in primary elections in both Democratic and Republican primaries: Adair, Bell, Boone, Breathitt, Breckinridge, Calloway, Campbell, Estill, Fulton, […]
Incumbent mayors of the two largest cities in the Bluegrass State are heading to the general election this November. But in a small Kentucky town, a mayor who was impeached from office narrowly took the lead in his primary. In Louisville, Mayor Craig Greenberg won 52.5% of the vote. The second place winner, Councilwoman Shameka […]
Ed Gallrein, Republican nominee for Congress in the Fourth District, began his victory speech Tuesday night by thanking President Trump. That was certainly appropriate, and arguably required, since Trump picked Gallrein to defeat seven-term Rep. Thomas Massie in what became the most expensive primary election ever held for a seat in the U.S. House of […]
Results for primaries in the Kentucky General Assembly were varied Tuesday night — with some incumbents getting booted by a handful of votes, while others stayed the course with large vote majorities. In Northern Kentucky, State Rep. Kim Banta, R-Ft. Mitchell, lost to a GOP challenger by 13 votes. Meanwhile, state Sen. Brandon Smith, R-Hazard, […]