Local attorney Mary Orange is seeking the office of Circuit Court Clerk for Logan County.
The Orange family has been actively involved in politics and government service the last couple of decades. The late Charles Orange, Mary’s father, became the first Republican to be elected Commonwealth’s Attorney for Logan and Todd counties. Dr. Josephine Orange, Mary’s mother, is currently the longest serving magistrate in the Fifth District of Logan County, and the only woman to serve on the court during her years in office. When Mary decided to run for Circuit Court Clerk and passed the qualifying examination, Dr. Orange made her announcement that she would not seek reelection, as to eliminate any perception of nepotism.
Mary’s brother, Edwin, has worked in state government in Frankfort, as has his wife Lindsay. Mary’s only sister, Jennifer Orange Jenkins, is a middle school teacher at Adairville, and is married to Gary Jenkins.
Mary is an attorney and is currently practicing in Logan County and the surrounding area. Mary worked as Staff Attorney for the Circuit Court of Logan and Todd counties under Judge Tyler Gill from 2016 until she resigned to file for Logan County Circuit Court Clerk, as required by the personnel policies of the Administrative Office of the Courts.
Mary graduated as valedictorian from Logan County High School, earned her B.A. in psychology with a minor in Construction Management from Western Kentucky University, and then earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Kentucky College of Law. While in law school, Mary interned with Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government’s Corporate Counsel.
Mary and her husband, Stephen Hardison, have been married for seven years, and live on their farm in North Logan County. Stephen owns and operates Southern Air Solutions, an HVAC company in Russellville.
Mary set out a list of goals she had for the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office in January of this year. While this list brought attention to some of the issues within the office that have since been resolved, there are still several items on the list that have not yet been addressed:
These include:
· Joining the over 50 Kentucky counties (including Muhlenberg, Butler, and Simpson counties) that have already implemented AOC’s Restitution Program;
· Creating an online portal focused on allowing easier access to office information and self-help forms for pro se litigants;
· Publicizing job openings and enforcing a strict anti-nepotism policy within the office;
· Providing extended office hours (beginning with a minimum of one Saturday a month); and
· Adhering to the recommended state guidelines for cross-training and file management within the office.
In addition, if elected, Mary Orange says she will make it a priority to regularly participate in community presentations designed to inform the public of important changes in the law, driver’s license updates associated with the REAL ID Act, and the Clerk’s Trust For Life, which promotes organ donation. She notes that currently, Logan County is in the bottom 10 percent of Kentucky counties for the percentage of citizens signed up for the organ donor registry.
Political advertisement paid for by Mary J. Orange