With the candidate filing deadline now passed, the races in each of Metro Council’s even-numbered districts are set. Just two candidates will go unchallenged in the May primary and the November general election: Democrats Brent Ackerson in District 26 and Josie Raymond in District 10.
Raymond is currently a state Representative. She announced her decision not to run again for that seat in November, opting instead to fill the Metro Council seat being vacated by Pat Mulvihill, who has been a council member since 2016. District 10 includes the Audubon, Camp Taylor and Bashford Manor neighborhoods. Ackerson, whose district includes parts of Jeffersontown and St. Matthews, has served on Metro Council since 2008. Ackerson and Raymond will represent their districts for the next four years.
Here’s what the picture looks like in the other 11 districts that'll be on the ballot:
District 2
Incumbent Democrat Barbara Shanklin is running for re-election. Shanklin is one of the few Metro Council members who have been on the council since it was created in the 2003 city-county merger.
She’ll face a primary challenge from Democrat Latosha Harrison. No Republican filed to run in District 2, meaning whoever wins the primary will be the next representative. The district includes Newburg.
District 4
Democrat-turned-Independent Jecorey Arthur announced last October he would not run for re-election. Now, District 4 has the largest field of Democratic candidates of any Metro Council race.
Eleven Democrats are running to replace Arthur, whose district covers downtown, Nulu and parts of Russell. The slate includes some prominent names like Demetrius McDowell Sr., who works to end gang violence; Joshua Alexander Crowder, a progressive organizer; and Joseph “Jody” Dahmer, president of urban agriculture group Beargrass Thunder.
The other candidates in the race are:
- Bridgett Smith
- Ken Herndon
- Stan Moore
- Carol Clark
- Dino Johnson
- Dennisha Rivers
- Mary K. Hall
- Bobbie James
Like in District 2, there are no Republican candidates. The May Democratic primary will decide who represents District 4 for the next four years.
District 6
One of Metro Council’s newest members, Democrat Phillip Baker, will face two primary challengers.
Baker was appointed to fill the District 6 seat last year after former Council President David James resigned to take a leadership position in Mayor Craig Greenberg’s administration. Baker won a special election last November, allowing him to serve through 2024.
Attorney and Emerge Kentucky graduate Kate Dittmeier Holm will run against Baker for the Democratic nomination. J.P. Lyninger, an activist and co-chair of the Louisville chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, will also be on the primary ballot.
There are no Republican candidates for District 6, which covers Old Louisville.
District 8
In District 8, Taylor McGovern-U’sellis is challenging incumbent Ben Reno-Weber for the Democratic nomination. McGovern-U’sellis is a community organizer who sits on the board of the Tyler Park Neighborhood Association.
Both McGovern-U’sellis and Reno-Weber applied to fill the vacancy in District 8 last year after Cassie Chambers Armstrong resigned to run for a seat in the state Senate. Metro Council ultimately appointed Reno-Weber and he went on to win a special election in November. Reno-Weber is currently the deputy director of the Health Equity Innovation Hub at the University of Louisville.
District 12
Incumbent Democrat Rick Blackwell is not facing a primary challenge, but he will have a Republican opponent in November. Blackwell was a founding member of Louisville Metro Council in 2003 and has been re-elected five times since then.
Three candidates will vie for the Republican nomination: Ryan Thompson, Jennifer Fox Brown and Jonathan “JJ” Joseph.
District 12 encompasses the Pleasure Ridge Park neighborhood and some of the unincorporated areas that surround it. Republicans are looking to gain additional seats in Louisville’s South End after the party flipped two seats in 2022 for the first time since merger.
District 14
In District 14, another South End district, Democrat Cindi Fowler will face two primary opponents: Autumn Lockhart and Neal A. Robertson. Fowler is a Valley Station resident and became chair of Metro Council’s Government Oversight and Accountability Committee last year. She’s currently leading removal proceedings against District 19 Republican Anthony Piagentini, who is accused of ethics violations.
There will be two Republican candidates in the primary: Crystal Ann Barajas and Crystal Bast. Barajas is the community outreach manager for BrightView Louisville, an addiction treatment center. Bast is a medical billings specialist and founder of the Valley Downs Neighborhood Watch. She’s also the founder of community events, including Valley Downs Trunk or Treat and Southwest Christmas.
District 16
There will be no primaries in District 16, which includes Prospect, Glenview and Indian Hills in the East End. There will, however, be a closely watched general election.
Democrat Matthew Golden, a familiar face in local politics, will challenge Republican incumbent Scott Reed. Golden is the director of the Jewish Community Relations Council in Louisville. He previously served as Chief of Public Services for Mayor Greg Fischer, overseeing EMS, fire and the city’s troubled downtown jail. Prior to that, he spent 25 years in the Jefferson County Attorney’s Office.
Reed has represented District 16 since 2016. He’s currently vice-chair of the council’s Republican Caucus.
District 18
Republican incumbent Marilyn Parker, who’s represented District 18 since 2020, will face serious competition from within her own party.
Douglass Hills Mayor Bonnie Jung filed to run in the district’s Republican primary last November. Jung is president of the Jefferson County League of cities, which represents the dozens of independent cities dotted across Louisville Metro. Five of those independent cities — including Douglass Hills, Hurstbourne and Jeffersontown — are located, in part, in District 18. Realtor Terry Allgeier is also running in the Republican primary.
The winner will face Democrat Mera Kathryn Corlett, who has served as a Justice of the Peace since 2018. Corlett ran unsuccessfully against Parker in 2020.
District 20
Two-term Jeffersontown City Council Member Brian Abrams will challenge incumbent Stuart Benson in the District 20 Republican primary. Abrams is the president of Britzi Energy Exteriors and ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Jeffersontown in 2022.
Benson was a founding member of the Metro Council, first elected to the body in 2002. He’s a retired teacher and serves on the boards of Glenridge Health Campus and the Blackacre Conservancy.
Democrat Marita Willis will face off against the winner of the Republican primary. Willis is the head of community engagement for Community Ventures, a nonprofit that helps people start businesses and become homeowners.
District 22
Republican State Rep. Kevin Bratcher of Fern Creek jumped into the District 22 race after Metro Council Member Robin Engel announced his plans to retire. Bratcher, who served six consecutive terms in the Kentucky House of Representatives, will go up against Robert John Zoeller Jr. in the Republican primary.
Democrat Rasean Crawley will not have a primary challenger. Crawley heads the account management team at Humana/CenterWell Pharmacy and is a board member of Friends of the Louisville Zoo, according to his campaign page.
District 24
Three candidates are vying to replace Metro Council Member Madonna Flood, who will retire at the end of the year. Flood served on the council since its founding. She’s a Democrat and lifelong resident of Okolona. Flood served as chair or vice chair of the Planning and Zoning Committee since Metro Council’s inception.
Army veteran Ryan Vittitow and Jefferson County Public Schools teacher Tyra Thomas-Walker will be on the District 24 ballot in the Democratic primary. The winner will face Republican Ginny Mulvey-Woolridge, who previously ran unsuccessfully for District 46 in the state House.
Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Crystal Bast is running as a Republican for District 14.
