It gets harder and harder to narrow down candidates the more local the position gets. Louisville Metro Council candidates this year have a lot they wish to improve upon, and I’ve given a list of the candidates for districts where it is still an active race; since many districts only have 1 candidate still running.
District 12:
Rick Blackwell (D)
Rick Blackwell (D) is president of DeSales High School, a board member of Mary & Elizabeth Hospital and Harbor House. He is also part of the Budget Committee, Govt. Oversight, and Public Safety Committees. Being from the south end, he wishes to help with any concerns regarding that area.
Jonathan Joseph (R)
Jonathan Joseph (R) has been a teacher at Butler for 10 years, hoping to continue his impact on the city as a member of metro council. He works at Southeast Christian Church’s High school ministry program and wants to lift up businesses like retail stores and restaurants.
District 14:
Cindi Fowler (D)
Cindi Fowler (D), the currency incumbent representative for district 14 is a board member of Shirley’s Way and Southwest Community Ministries. Her priorities are to repurpose abandoned buildings and build emergency docks.
Crystal Bast (R)
Crystal Bast (R) was a medical billing specialist for over 15 years and frequently organizes local neighborhood events. Her priorities are to empower first responders and increase public safety. She also plans to build and improve infrastructure for seniors and veterans.
District 16:
Matthew Golden (D)
Matthew Golden (D) has worked with the law for 27 years and has worked for TARC and Public Services for Louisville Metro Govt. Golden wants to work on “smart development,” which includes plans to solve issues regarding traffic near the new VA hospital.
Scott Reed (R)
Scott Reed (R) is the incumbent representative for district 16 and works with the Planning & Zoning, Minority Caucus, and Public Safety Committees; However the KY Registry of Election Finance found Reed had violated multiple campaign finance laws in 2016. His goals are to strengthen the police by increasing pay and increasing the total number of officers.
District 18:
Mera Corlett (D)
Mera Corlett (D) is judge for District A of Jefferson County Justice of the Peace. She graduated from Emerge Kentucky and was the leader of the KY Young Democrats, and later worked at 7 Counties Services. Her goals are to improve public safety, with concern over crime rates.
Marilyn Parker (R)
Marilyn Parker (R) is the incumbent representative for District 18 and has served for 3 terms. She currently focuses on Public Safety and Budget committees. Before she served on the metro council, she was a trauma nurse at UofL Hospital. Her goals are to improve the LMPD with better training, better tech, and a new facility.
District 20:
Marita Willis (D)
Marita Willis (D) previously worked at PNC Bank’s community development, which taught financial advice to low income people. She did similar work with eHome America, helping people with buying their 1st homes. Her goals are to improve development in west & south areas, and wants to help with access to affordable homes.
Stuart Benson (R)
Stuart Benson (R) has been a Metro Council member since 2002 and has helped to build new roads, parks, and sidewalks. He also worked to create an anonymous line to expose fraud in the government. His goals are to improve public safety and increase punishments, compared to judges that don’t align with his views.
District 22:
Rasean Crawley (D)
Rasean Crawley (D) is an expert in business development with a doctorate in business administration and 10+ years of working in the field at companies like Humana. His goals are to increase development and grow his district, as well as work with the LMPD to encourage safety and responsibility in communities and neighborhoods, and wants city spending to be more public.
Kevin Bratcher (R)
Kevin Bratcher (R) served in the Army and is currently a state representative for house district 29, but wants to now serve more locally. He has stated that he is excited to serve for Fern Creek, and his goals are to improve traffic along Bardstown Road, which has recently experienced many traffic problems.
District 24:
Tyra Thomas-Walker (D)
Tyra Thomas-Walker (D) has been a special education teacher at JCPS for 15 years. She is currently the co-chair of KAARPR, which works to eliminate systematic racism in local groups. Her goals are to strengthen JCPS and get it closer with the local government to assist students, families, and teachers. More specifically, she wants to increase mental health resources for those dealing with addiction.
Ginny Mulvey-Woolridge (R)
Ginny Mulvey-Woolridge (R) has been an IT director for 2 decades, and has a long list of organizations she works with such as: Crusade for Children, Fraternal Order of Police, Southeast Christian Church, National Eating Disorder Association, etc. Her goals are to strengthen LMPD with better equipment, as well as better tools for first responders like fire dept, EMTs, Paramedics, etc.
