District 6

U.S. House of Representatives – District 6

There are two candidates in the Democratic primary for the 6 th Congressional House seat. The winner will face the Republican nominee – either incumbent Andy Barr or his primary challengers Chuck Eddy or Geoff Young – in the November general election.

The Democratic candidates are:

Josh Hicks

www.joshhicksforcongress.com

www.facebook.com/ JoshHicksKY

twitter.com/ joshhicksky

Daniel Kemph

Did not respond.

Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District

U.S House District 6 includes the following counties: Anderson, Bourbon, Clark, Estill, Fayette, Franklin, Jessamine (part), Madison, Montgomery, Powell, Scott, Woodford, Bath, Fleming, Harrison (part), Menifee, Nicholas, Robertson and Wolfe.

QUESTIONS

What’s your vision for Kentucky? How will the lives of Kentuckians be improved as a result of your time in office?

Josh Hicks: My vision for Kentucky is an egalitarian society with good educational opportunities that begin with preschool education and continue through post-secondary education, to include job training and a well-funded workforce development program. To foster an environment that is attractive for businesses to locate, hire, and retain Kentuckians, and to help develop Kentucky — both rural and urban — into an economy that works for everyone.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

How would you create a more equitable federal tax structure – where everyone pays their fair share – that raises adequate revenue, fights poverty, and invests in under-resourced communities and the services we all need?

Josh Hicks: I would advocate for legislation that creates an equitable tax structure so that those least able to bear the burden are not stuck with regressive taxes that lower their quality of life, and those most able to bear the burden pay their fair share. We should be seeking adequate revenue from income-based tax programs, and move away from regressive tax policies that burden low-income people (e.g. gas tax, sales tax, and surcharges).

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

What would you do to make sure that every Kentuckian has quality, affordable health care? What are your top health policy priorities, and what approaches to health care coverage do you support? Do you support Medicare For All?

Josh Hicks: I want to ensure that everyone who doesn’t feel well can go to the doctor without the fear of bankruptcy. I am for a healthcare plan that ensures affordable, quality care, that includes a public option as well as oversight of healthcare companies to prevent the improper denial of legitimate medical care. I do not support Medicare for All but favor a Medicare buy-in public option. I support the Medicaid expansion, which not only provided care for people who otherwise would not be able to get treated, but also provided much-needed funding for rural hospitals facing bankruptcy.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

U.S. House – District 6 Democratic Primary

Do you support comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship for young people and adults? What are your plans to expand support and resources for immigrants and refugees, undocumented or otherwise?

Josh Hicks: I support the DREAM Act, which provides a pathway to citizenship for those who qualify. I support an immigration system that is much more fair and much more transparent, and advocate for funding our overburdened immigration court system. We should all treat all persons with equal dignity. I believe that any removal or deportation efforts must be prioritized to focus on those who have committed serious crimes in this country.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

Is dealing with the climate crisis a high priority for you, and if so, do you support federal legislation for a Green New Deal? How would you ensure that solutions to the climate crisis benefit all Kentuckians – no matter the color of our skin, income, immigration status, or zip code?

Josh Hicks: I believe that climate change is real and is a crisis. I believe we should pursue a comprehensive energy plan that includes clean and renewable energy sources, not just for the environmental benefit, but also for the economic benefit of the people of Kentucky. I believe those environmental and economic benefits should be available to all of the people of Kentucky.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

What is the role of the U.S. Congress in opposing white supremacy, addressing racial inequality and supporting racial justice for Black people, Indigenous people, Latinx people, immigrants, those who are undocumented, and all people of color in our country? Please identify at least two policy initiatives you would propose while in office to address racial and systemic inequalities.

Josh Hicks: The role of the US Congress is to legislate equally and to ensure that all policy does not put an undue burden on a certain class of people, or inure to the benefit of a certain class of people, regardless of their race or religion. The policy initiatives I would pursue include reforming our cash bail system to ensure equal access for justice to everyone, regardless of socioeconomic status, and promoting community policing standards in federal law enforcement to ensure that our law enforcement officers are of, from, and live in the communities that they serve.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

Kentucky has the ninth highest incarceration rate in the nation, is second in the nation for incarcerating women, and has the second-highest rate in the country of children separated from a parent due to incarceration. In addition, Black Kentuckians make up 8.3 percent of the state population but 21 percent of the state’s incarcerated population. Are you committed to ending mass incarceration in Kentucky and in the United States as a whole? Why or why not? If elected, what will you do to make strides toward ending mass incarceration and reinvesting resources into the communities most impacted by this system?

Josh Hicks: We need to focus on equal justice under the law, not privatizing prisons and putting a profit motive on incarceration. One solution to decreasing mass incarceration is to end the funding for private prisons in America, that keeps that incarceration rate high, to remove the profit motive and focus on rehabilitation.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

Do you support restoring voting rights to Kentuckians with felonies in their past? Specifically, do you support the Democracy Restoration Act to restore voting rights to people upon release from prison for purposes of voting in federal elections? Do you support restoring the Voting Rights Advancement Act to ensure strong federal oversight of state and local governments with a history of voter suppression aimed at communities of color? Please explain.

Josh Hicks: Yes. The Criminal Justice System I envision is heavy on reformation, and therefore I would support those who have served their time being restored their rights — including the right to vote. And yes, I would support any initiative that places checks on those who have a pattern of discriminating against anyone’s voting rights, including discrimination against people of color.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

Do you support proposed Just Transition bills in Congress to take care of coal miners and communities by investing in abandoned mine land reclamation (H.R. 2156 and H.R. 4248) and extending current funding for the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund for another 10 years (H.R. 3876 and S.3171)? Why or why not?

Josh Hicks: Yes. I support those — it is imperative that we not only take care of the people who have worked in coal mines or in coal communities, but also restore the land so that is livable for future generations.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

U.S. House – District 6 Democratic Primary

What will you do to support LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, queer) Kentuckians? What will you do to protect people from discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations based on sexual orientation and gender identity?

Josh Hicks: I would support initiatives that provided people in the LGBTQ community with the same rights as every other American. I believe that all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, deserve equal civil rights. I will advocate for everyone to be treated equally under the law, which is a fundamental principle of American democracy.

Daniel Kemph: Did not respond.

The fight for Voting Rights for people with felonies in their past

We believe that all Kentucky citizens should vote and that our Democracy is stronger when we hear from everyone.

In most states, after people serve their time they get their voting rights back automatically.

In Kentucky, even a class D felony is enough to cost someone their voting rights forever unless they got a pardon from the governor, or go through an expensive process of having their record expunged for a limited number of Class D felonies. Kentucky is one of the most difficult states for someone to get their voting rights back.

Even after Governor Beshear’s executive order in December 2019, more than 100,000 Kentuck ians who have served their time can’t vote because of this barrier – disproportionately from low-in come and people of color communities. This takes away tremendous voting power from these com munities and hurts us all.

We Believe …

We believe that after someone has served their time, they should be given back their right to vote – because that’s the fair thing to do and because it makes Kentucky’s democracy stronger. And it’s only fair that people who work, pay taxes, have kids in public schools and contribute in other important ways be allowed representation in our government.

Restoring voting rights even contributes to crime prevention. People with felonies in their past who vote are statistically half as likely to recidivate (commit future crimes) than those who don’t vote. When you think about it, it makes sense. When someone feels like part of a community, they’re less likely to act out against that community.

Solutions

A change is needed in Section 145 of the Kentucky Constitution to correct this problem. This would start out as a bill passed by legislators in the General Assembly which would then allow Kentucky voters to decide whether to grant automatic restoration of voting rights to people once they have paid their debt to society.

Getting Involved

Winning this issue will take a mass movement of people connecting with their neighbors, shar ing stories of why this issue matters, being active online and finding new ways to engage as many voters as possible. If you’d like to get involved in this issue, please reach out to your local KFTC or ganizer or contact Dave Newton at 859-420-8919 or Dave@kftc.org. It’s especially important to us to have more people who have lost the right to vote because your voices are especially powerful.

Kentucky Supreme Court, 7 th District

There is an important primary election for the Kentucky Supreme Court seat that represents eastern and northeastern Kentucky. Three candidates have filed for the seat – incumbent Sam Wright, state Rep. Chris Harris and Robert Conley. The top two vote-getters in the June 23 primary will face each other in November for the six-year term. All three responded to KFTC’s candidate survey, and their answers can be found at: http://kftc.org/election/justice-supreme-court-7th-district

This is a nonpartisan race. That means all registered voters – whether Democrat, Republican, Independent or another party – may vote in this race.

The district covers 22 counties – Boyd, Breathitt, Carter, Elliott, Floyd, Greenup, Harlan, Johnson, Knott, Lawrence, Letcher, Magoffin, Martin, Menifee, Montgomery, Morgan, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powell, Rowan and Wolfe.

Voting by mail and other voting options

Voting will be a little different this year for the June 23 primary election, with most voting happening by mail. But there are a few different options Kentucky voters have to cast their ballot.

There is a link where you can request a mail-in ballot at www.GoVoteKY.com

Alternatively, you can call your county clerk now to request a mail-in ballot, but that process will have added steps. You can find your county clerk’s number at https://bit.ly/ KYCountyClerks. Some county clerk websites also have an online form to request a ballot.

There’s a June 15 deadline to request mail ballots. Ballots need to be postmarked no later than June 23 and received by June 26.

Getting it mailed earlier is better. Postage on ballots is already paid. There will be local drop boxes at limited locations if you’d prefer to drop it off (your county clerk can tell you where).

The June 23 primary includes elections for the U.S. Senate, U.S. House, state legislative seats and some local governing bodies. To see who’s on your ballot, where they stand on issues, check your voter registration and more, visit www.KentuckyElection.org.

There will be in-person voting at limited locations (not your usual precinct) on Election Day, with some early voting by appointment at the county clerk’s office. This process likely will vary from county to county, so check with your county clerk (https://bit.ly/ KYCountyClerks).

Have question? Reach out to Dave Newton at Dave@kftc.org or 859-420-8919.