Candidates running for local office in Paducah in the November general election made their cases to voters Thursday evening at a forum hosted by the local NAACP chapter.
The Paducah-McCracken County NAACP offered the opportunity for candidates running for the far western Kentucky city’s mayor’s office, city commission and 2nd District Judge to share their platforms in front of community members at the Clemens Fine Arts Center on the campus of West Kentucky Community and Technical College.
Mayor’s race features incumbent against current city commissioner
A pair of businessmen are vying for a four-year term leading one of the largest cities in far western Kentucky.
Incumbent George Bray, who was first elected to the office in 2020, is facing a challenger in City Commissioner David Guess, who has served four terms on the council. His first two terms were from 2003 to 2006 and he rejoined after winning election in 2021, the same time Bray began his first term.
Bray said, if he’s elected to another term, his main priorities will be “people and projects.”
“I work on issues with homelessness and food insecurity, addiction, all of those things every single day. It's just something that's part of my job, and I assure you that I'm going to continue to represent those who need it most as mayor of your city,” he said.
Bray said the biggest development project he would focus on is the revitalization of the Ohio River side of the Paducah floodwall.
Meanwhile, Guess said he has heard several complaints about the challenges contractors face in obtaining permits for projects and building them within city limits. He said the city of Paducah has a reputation of being hard to work with, something he thinks he can change if elected to the post.
“We have so much to offer. We have rail, water and roads. We have so much untapped potential, but we're going to need to change the leadership to make us more attractive to the industry and not just gas stations and hotels and restaurants,” Guess said.
In 2023, Paducah’s city commission – including Bray – voted unanimously to remove Guess from his elected office over racially-charged texts he sent about Dujuan Thomas, a 2022 city commission candidate who’s running again this year. However, a local judge issued an injunction preventing the city from removing Guess from office, ruling that the First Amendment protects “even repugnant speech.”
Guess and the City of Paducah later mutually agreed not to pursue further legal action, and he was fully reinstated to his office.
Six candidates campaigning for four City Commission seats
Three incumbents and three challengers are running to fill four two-year terms on Paducah’s city commission. The top four vote-getters in the November election will fill those seats.
Incumbents Raynarldo Henderson, Robert “Buz” Smith and Sandra Wilson and candidates Trey Griffin, Dujuan Thomas and Allen Treece all answered questions submitted by community members during Thursday’s forum.
Some of the questions centered on community engagement in city projects, business incentives, improving diversity and inclusion in the community, Southside development, homelessness and housing issues in the community.
Henderson – who has served as the pastor of Washington Street Baptist Church for over 30 years and was first elected to the commission in 2020 – said one thing he wants to focus on is engaging the community.
“My tenure has been four years of learning from people and serving these same people. My platform is simple: building Paducah by building people,” Henderson said.
Smith – a strategic planner for the U.S. Department of Energy who was re-elected to the commission in 2022 after serving six terms from 1997 to 2008 – said he’s been involved with several successful city projects and wants to use that experience to continue the city’s growth.
“The unique thing is I got off City Commission for 15 years, so I go back a long way. I know the things that have worked and the things that have not worked,” Smith said.
Wilson is the Paducah Chamber of Commerce President and CEO. Seeking her seventh term on the city commission, she said what motivates her is thinking about ways to make the community a better place.
“With my regional, state and national relationships and partnerships I can help bring back to the city, I will continue to be of service to our community, working hard on your behalf,” Wilson said.
Griffin, who is running for city commission for the first time, owns a plumbing business in Paducah and has worked in the city for nearly 40 years.
“I know a little bit about running a business, building a business, and I think I can take that experience with me to City Hall,” Griffin said.
Thomas has held a variety of roles involving logistical operations and also owns a media production business. He previously ran a write-in campaign for mayor in 2020 and ran for city commission in 2022. Thomas also earned a master’s degree in legal studies, studying how local, state and federal governments work, which he said would prepare him to serve if he wins office.
“I’ve been chasing this dream not just for myself, but for the community members that want and need a new voice in office,” Thomas said.
Treece is the Community Schools Director at Paducah Public Schools, overseeing grant-funded efforts to connect students and parents with services that support their well-being. His parents were also educators, and he said he wants to continue their legacy of impacting community members’ lives in public office.
“I'm always trying to work that same mindset of trying to be a positive change. Try to be that positive influence, the change you want to see in the world. I try to follow that. And that's what I want to bring to this role of City Commission,” Treece said.
Hines, Mills vie to fill 2nd District Court judge office
Gov. Andy Beshear appointed James Mills to temporarily fill the 2nd District Court judge opening in McCracken County this spring, following the death of former judge Chris Hollowell in late 2023.
District courts typically handle matters like traffic violations, misdemeanors, arraignment, small claims and other similar hearings.
Jenny Hines and Mills were the top two vote-getters in the May primary for the office, and are running to fill the last two years of the current term.
Mills was a prosecutor in the McCracken County Commonwealth Attorney’s office prior to his appointment to the judge’s office, and also has experience as a public defender. He argued that his experience in the courtroom – both in front and behind the bench – would be beneficial to the community.
“I am cut out for this particular job, and it's all I want to do to the best of my ability for you. This is an important decision. It's not time to take a risk on someone who is unproven,” Mills said.
Hines is a partner at Boehl, Stopher and Graves law firm in Paducah. An Air Force veteran, Hines also previously worked as an attorney for the Kentucky Court of Appeals. It was there, she said, that she learned the importance of getting things right the first time. She said she wants to use her experience to make a difference in the judicial system.
“Whenever you go to court, you would have somebody who's fair, who will listen to you, who values you as your person, who cares about your community and wants to make this a better place for us to live,” Hines said.
The candidate forum can be viewed in its entirety on WPSD Local 6’s Facebook page.
