Barry Kennedy is associate professor of history at Southcentral Kentucky Community & Technical College and an officer of the Logan County Republican Executive Committee.
This Saturday, March 5, Kentucky will make history. The Republican Party of Kentucky (RPK) will host the first ever GOP Presidential Caucus in the history of the Bluegrass state. This caucus will allow Kentuckians who are registered as Republicans an opportunity to have their voice heard and for their vote to count in terms of electing a candidate for president. This election will be run by RPK and not by the County Clerk’s Office.
The people of Logan County will be able to vote from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday at the GOP headquarters in Downtown Russellville (the address is 115 S. Main Street). Voters must have been registered as a Republican before Dec. 31, 2015 to vote in the caucus. When voters show up, they will have an opportunity to see material from the candidates and they will be able to obtain information about the local Logan County party, and other individuals running for office.
To vote you need to bring a form of ID, such as a Driver’s License. If anyone’s name is not on the voter roll or if they requested an absentee ballot before the deadline of Feb. 19, 2016, they will not be able to vote.
This election is not a winner take all. Candidates that meet a certain threshold will win a portion of the delegates. No one from the local party will be able to provide any information such as who won the election or any other information as mandated by RPK. An announcement will come from RPK around 7 p.m. stating the winner of the election.
The only office that voters will be voting for is the candidate for the GOP Presidential nomination. All other Democratic and Republican offices will be voted on during the May Primary.
If you would like more information about the election, you can contact any member of the Logan County GOP Executive Committee or you can call me at 270-847-8903 and I will be happy to answer your questions.