Sunday, May 30, 1999
Patton: Lack of a race telling
BY PATRICK CROWLEY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
FRANKFORT — Gov. Paul Patton shies away from using the “M” word when looking at the Republicans' poor showing in last week's gubernatorial primary.
Yet it's hard not to start talking about a mandate given Mr. Patton's position as he runs this year for a second term.
Last week Peppy Martin, a little-known Hart County publicist who ran a bare bones campaign, barely won the GOP primary over David L. Williams, a disabled utility contractor who did no campaigning and refused to grant media interviews.
Only 4.5 percent of the state's registered Republicans turned out to vote in one of the worst showings in Kentucky election history.
In an interview after the primary, Mr. Patton said the results, as well as the fact that a stronger Republican candidate isn't in the race, show that he and his administration are doing something right.
“I think that the people certainly are approving of what we have done and they are going to expect us to continue to make the changes we've promised to make,” Mr. Patton said.
As he has done since January, when all the big name Republicans backed off of taking him on this year, Mr. Patton pledged to run an aggressive, visible campaign for the fall's gubernatorial race.
Mr. Patton said the low turnout Tuesday is a concern, and hitting the campaign trail — he'll visit all 120 counties in the fall, as he did this spring despite being unopposed in the primary — is designed to keep people interested in the election.
“The people who don't agree with you ... tend to turn out to vote against you, using the anonymity of the ballot box to express their displeasure,” he said.
But Mr. Patton has puzzled some supporters and pundits by rolling out controversial issues like casino gambling and an increase in the gas tax in an election year.
The governor hasn't officially endorsed either proposal, but he has raised the issues on the stump and in interviews and speeches, and has said the topics should be considered next year by the General Assembly.
“These are issues that need to be discussed,” he said. “I'm just trying to get the message across while not supporting either issue. But six months before an election is the time when people need to be listening to both sides.”
Kristi Nelson, chairwoman of the Boone County Democratic Party, said Mr. Patton “is remaining true to himself by tackling the tough issues.”
She pointed out Mr. Patton pushed a comprehensive workers' compensation reform bill through the General Assembly three years ago. The reform made it tougher to collect benefits for breathing injuries related to coal mining and made the governor unpopular in his native mountains of Eastern Kentucky.
“He sees what's good for the Commonwealth and doesn't worry about the impact of approval ratings,” Ms. Nelson said. “That's what makes him a great leader.”
As for Mr. Patton's future, there has been wide speculation that should he win an expected second term in November he will run against U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, a Southgate Republican, in 2004.
“The only thing I've decided to do is hopefully get re-elected and work until the very last day of the next term,” he said.
“And then if I feel like I can still contribute, I may try to do something else ... but for now that's just all speculation,” said Mr. Patton, who turned 62 last Wednesday.
He's also had some feelers from the camp of Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore about running for vice president.
“I don't know if I would take it even if it was offered,” Mr. Patton said. “I just can't imagine ... giving up being governor.”
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