Education and the economy top the list of issues for two candidates running to replace Georgetown Republican Damon Thayer in the 17th Senate District. The district includes part of Kenton and Fayette counties and all of Scott and Grant counties.
The Democrat in the race is Kiana Fields of Georgetown, a Scott County native whose family roots in the region trace back to the enslavement of her ancestors in the 1840s.
Fields attended Scott County public schools and is a graduate of Centre College and the University of Louisville, where she is the university’s research and education coordinator.
Fields told LINK nky that her years in public school and her career in postsecondary education have shown her “the importance of funding and resources for public schools from pre-K to college age.”
Support for education, she said, leads to a stronger workforce.
“My career in postsecondary education has provided me with the opportunity to work, recruit and learn about different parts of Kentucky, supporting the growth and retention of talent for our state’s workforce,” Fields said. “This experience has given me a deep appreciation for the challenges and opportunities that exist within our district and throughout the commonwealth.”
Access to health care for all – including mental health care – and economic growth “built on small businesses, attracting new industries and supporting the Kentucky agricultural community” while protecting workers’ labor rights are also part of Fields’ platform.
Matt Nunn is a Sadieville Republican who is vice president of enterprise risk management at Toyota’s sole general trading company Toyota Tsusho America and owner (along with his wife, Ashley Nunn) of Slainte Public House in Georgetown. He also served with the Kentucky Army National Guard.
His focus for the district, Nunn told LINK, is business-friendly policies, eliminating the state income tax, limited government and improving public schools no matter what voters decide on Amendment 2 this fall.
He did tell LINK nky he will be voting for Amendment 2, which is a proposed constitutional amendment on the Nov. 5 ballot that would allow state lawmakers to budget public funding for K-12 education outside of the public school system.
“Regardless of what happens with the ballot measure, 85% or 90% of our kids are going to remain in public schools, and they have to be effective,” Nunn told LINK nky. “They have to be places where parents feel comfortable sending their kids but also places where teachers want to be. So I’m very passionate and intent on doing all I can to support public schools.”
Nunn told LINK nky he is opposed to exceptions to Kentucky’s abortion ban for rape or incest because the trauma of having an abortion can be equal to the trauma of carrying a child who is the result of rape or incest to term.
When asked by LINK how they will deliver on their goals if elected, both candidates talked about working well with others to improve life in the 17th.
Nunn said he will use his experience as a problem solver and consensus builder, “listening to learn so I can understand an issue from different perspectives, working hard to develop effective solutions to problems, and keeping my reason for running at the forefront.”
Fields said she will use her professional skills “to foster collaboration across the aisle. Transparency is key; I will ensure that the public is informed about what is happening and the reasons behind my proposed and supported legislation.”
Fields told LINK nky that when it comes to Kentucky’s abortion ban, she believes that is a medical decision that should be up to a family and their doctor and not up to the legislative body. She also said that, should she win election, she would work to tackle the problem of maternal mortality.
Fields said she will be voting against Amendment 2 because, rather than diverting funds away from public schools, Kentucky should focus on how to fix the problems that exist within public schools in the first place.
Senate District 17 includes part of Kenton County, including Independence, Crittenden and Dry Ridge.