District 36 Newsletter '22 #5
November 2022
Greetings!

It's Election time! Please get out and make your voice heard as a Citizen. The right to vote was bought with the blood of our ancestors, and we should not take it lightly.
Where is your neighborhood voting location? click here to check your address for election day Nov 8th.
Also, there are 7 places to vote early (Nov 3,4,5), in person, with ID, on a paper ballot, including the Jeffersonian in Jtown, and Marriott East at I-64 and Hurstbourne.
The KY voting laws have been improved and tightened up greatly over the last 3 years, to the point KY is now considered a top 10 state on election integrity laws. Your vote will count!

Voter turnout in District 36 is critical for our Louisville Mayor election!!! I endorse and support Bill Dieruf for Mayor, who lives in Jtown and understands our issues in District 36. Louisville has NEVER had a mayor that lived east of the Watterson Expressway... hmm... it is about time we got some representation in the Mayor's office that will address public safety and roads in our area!

I will do my best to answer questions and consider your input on District 36 issues if you would like to contact me. Liberty is a team sport!
Let's protect faith, family, and freedom in KY!
District 36 Road & Traffic Plans
The 2022 KY Highway Plan is posted, with $281 Million in improvements near District 36

Road Plan Priorities - 2020 SHIFT
I recently looked at the 2020 SHIFT (Strategic Highway Investment Formula for Tomorrow) study for our area, This identifies roads that are highest priority in terms of safety, congestion and economics, as highlighted on the map (zoom in for a look, it takes a minute to load). It takes years of effort at the State, Regional, and local level to get these priorities inserted into the 2 year road budget, and only about 1/3rd get funded. It is a highly competitive process chasing scarce tax $, and involves statistics as well as politics and public input. I work regularly with State and City elected officials to push critical projects through the slow, painful process. I drive these roads every day, and I think the study highlighted the right problem areas. Your involvement matters! I will cover developments in projects in this space monthly, and I solicit your feedback.
Constitutional Minute
Legislative Branch Elections
The KY Constitution requires State House candidates to be 24 years old, and live in their District. 100 State Representatives each represent about 1% of the state population, or 45,000 people each.

There are 435 US House members in Congress, each representing around 700,000 people.
US Constitution, Article I Section 2: The House of Representatives
"The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors [voters] in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.
No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty-five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen. [1787]

Regarding Congressional qualifications, Alexander Hamilton explained in the Federalist Papers #52: “Under these reasonable limitations, the door of this part of the federal government is open to merit of every description, whether native or adoptive, whether young or old, and without regard to poverty or wealth, or to any particular profession of religious faith.”
Legislative Update
The Legislature voted to put 2 KY Constitutional Amendments on the ballot this year, to be voted on by the people.

Amendment 1 adds "checks and balances" to the power of the Governor, by allowing the Legislature to call itself into session at any time during the year, vs the Governor having sole control over regulations for 8+ months of the year. There are also 12 more optional legislative days added. There are some potential negatives in extending the legislative calendar, but I think the need for balance of executive power outweighs that. As you know, I am firmly committed to a smaller, less expensive and less intrusive government, but the Legislative branch has to be able to "check" the Executive branch, so I am voting "yes" on this. I dont trust any government entity to "do the right thing" all the time without checks and balances to their power.

Amendment 2 is the "Yes for Life" amendment, which simply says: “To protect human life, nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.” The amendment does not add to or change any current abortion law; it is a preventive measure to make sure some activist judge does not "discover a right" that does not exist in the KY Constitution to invalidate a duly passed law.
There are several existing laws in KY regarding abortion, and contrary to some advertising you may have seen, the KY law you can read here includes exceptions for medical emergencies and the life of the mother. The Amendment will only prevent some KY judge from arbitrarily invalidating current KY law based on the KY Constitution. This is a topic of intense disagreement in our society, and not many people are open to changing their values on it, but it is important to know what we are actually voting on. I am voting "yes" this, consistent with my campaign promises and values.
Political Happenings in Dist 36
Time to vote for Judges! So many judges…
There are 15 contested Judge races on the ballot in Jefferson County! Judge races are non-partisan – no party affiliation, so you can’t vote “straight ticket” for them.
I am voting for the ones I think most likely to uphold the Rule of Law, put dangerous criminals in jail, and not “legislate from the bench” on controversial social issues.
Here are my picks on the 15 contested races for your consideration:
  • Supreme Court – Bisig
  • Appeals Court 2 – Audra Eckerle (know her personally)
  • Appeals Court 2 – Karem
  • 30th Circuit 4 – Haegle
  • 30th Circuit 5 – Shaw
  • 30th Circuit 7 – Bellows
  • 30th Circuit – 10 – Dorislee Gilbert (know her personally)
  • 30th District 1 – Jones
  • 30th District 3 – Garvey
  • 30th District 6 – Brown
  • 30th District 7 – McDonald
  • 30th District 8 – Stone
  • 30th District 9 – (no clear choice)
  • 30th District 10 – Nicholson
  • 30th District 15 – Claudette Patton (know her personally)
Last Notes
Recent Media Appearances:
84 WHAS – listen to my interview with Dwight Witten on Warrant-less surveillance and privacy

Archived Recent Newsletters:
October 2022 - I64 Interchange, Judicial races
September '22 – Eastwood Cutoff project, Constitutional Privacy protection
August '22 – KY 155 / Pope Lick project, Limitations on Government Power
July '22 – First newsletter – our God-given Rights

Interns:
I am seeking a few unpaid interns to help with policy research and other duties a few flexible hours a month. Most activities could be done remotely. If you know a student (age 16+) that loves America, and would like some public policy experience and resumé-building, contact me.
Thanks for reading and being involved!
John Hodgson
Representative-Elect District 36
Address: PO Box 74
Fisherville, KY 40023
Phone: (502) 276-5213