FRANKFORT — Rep. Jim Callahan, Northern Kentucky's highest-ranking member in the Kentucky House of Representatives, announced this week he will seek a ninth term in November.

        Mr. Callahan, 62, a Wilder Democrat, is the House Majority Caucus Chairman, holding one of five leadership posts in the House. He is also a member of the budget committee and one of Gov. Paul Patton's closest legislative allies.

        No Republican has stepped forward to challenge Mr. Callahan, a former mayor of Southgate first elected to the legislature in 1986. The filing deadline for this year's election is Jan. 29.

        “I continue to be re-energized by the progress we're making in transforming Northern Kentucky into one of the most progressive and exciting regions in Kentucky and the nation,” said Mr. Callahan, who chose the opening day of the 2002 General Assembly session to announce his re-election campaign.

        “I'm also enthusiastic about upholding the unprecedented commitment to higher education lawmakers have made in recent years,” he said. “If we safeguard the progress we've made and refuse to backtrack, we can ensure a lasting change for the better in Kentucky's educational culture.”

        Mr. Callahan was the primary sponsor of a sweeping higher-education reform bill that was passed and became law in 1997. The bill helped lead to the creation of a Northern Kentucky community college, now under development in Boone County.

        He also co-sponsored the Kentucky Tourism Development Act in 1996, which provides tax breaks to major tourism projects and helped lead to the development of the Kentucky Speedway in Gallatin County and Newport on the Levee.

        During his years in Frankfort, Mr. Callahan said he has sponsored more than 400 pieces of legislation that have been signed into law.

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