Same race, new challenges

Just 24 votes separated Sen. Johnny Ray Turner from challenger Eric Shane Hamilton in the 2004 Democratic primary for Eastern Kentucky's 29th Senate District.

Now, Hamilton is back for a rematch. And a lot has changed in four years.

Since then, Turner -- the Senate Democratic caucus leader -- was implicated in a vote-buying scandal stemming from his 2000 election. He pleaded guilty in December 2006 to a misdemeanor and served a three-month sentence under home arrest.

Hamilton, meanwhile, traded in his industrial cleaning business to become a landlord. But after buying two apartment complexes in west Lexington, he's found himself dogged by city code enforcement officials.

So the two candidates, still slightly bruised from their last contest and the events in between, meet again in the May 20 primary to be decided by Democratic voters in Floyd, Knott, Breathitt and Letcher counties.

"I think the whole dynamics of the campaign are different now," Turner said. He insists that the vote-buying saga, which lasted for six years, isn't shading the race.

"On the campaign trail, it hasn't been an issue," Turner said. People know that he pleaded "guilty to a non-willful -- and I emphasize non-willful -- misdemeanor," he said.

He prefers to talk about his status as a party leader in the Senate, which helps him direct funds to the district. But when pressed, Turner doesn't point to any particular accomplishments.

Hamilton, however, said Turner's legal problems should and will factor into voters' decision. "He's got a lot more than the guilty plea. It seems that everyone associated with the campaign has gone to jail," Hamilton said.

Hamilton also is the nephew of former Democratic state Sen. Benny Ray Bailey of Hindman. It was Bailey whom Turner defeated in 2000 -- the same campaign that landed Turner in hot water.

Turner's legal saga

Turner's problems started after federal investigators looked into election activities of prominent Eastern Kentucky businessman and political fund-raiser Ross Harris and his right-hand man, Glenn Turner, Johnny Ray's cousin.

Prosecutors found questionable campaign checks cut during Turner's 2000 campaign and in May 2005. A federal grand jury indicted Turner, his cousin and Harris for allegedly paying people for votes.

Harris died during the trial in 2006, and Glenn Turner was sentenced to six months in prison for lying to jurors about his involvement in another vote fraud case.

Johnny Ray Turner, a former high school basketball coach who was a political novice in 2000, testified that he let his cousin handle his campaign finances. And Turner said he knew the campaign paid workers and vote haulers in the final days of the race and should have realized some weren't legitimate.

Prosecutors and U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell, who sentenced Turner in April 2007 to three months under home arrest and one year on probation, said Turner wasn't a ringleader of the fraud but, in Caldwell's words, was a "willing victim."

Key Eastern Kentucky Democrats, such as state Rep. Greg Stumbo of Prestonsburg, have since come to Turner's defense. "He did what he should have done, which was take responsibility," Stumbo said. "People understand that. The court record reflects that it was an unintentional violation."

Hamilton's new venture

When Hamilton ran for the Senate in 2004, he owned a chain of Subway sandwich restaurants, a commercial cleaning company and a Karate studio, which Turner's campaign criticized in 2004 and again this year in ads.

"They made an issue out of that because I teach martial arts, and somehow they try to imply that I wasn't qualified" to be a senator, Hamilton said. "He taught phys. ed., and I guess he is?"

Hamilton no longer owns the restaurants or the cleaning firm, but instead purchased 352 rental units in Lexington and Eastern Kentucky.

A review of records at the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government Division of Code Enforcement shows that the apartment complex Hamilton owns at 1040 Cross Keys Road in west Lexington received several hundred violations and required "major work" on its stairs and balcony to avoid having part of the structure condemned.

A code enforcement inspection revealed violations in 86 of the building's 96 units. Many of the citations were for minor repairs, such as patching ceilings or peeling paint, while other units required electrical work to ground outlets near sinks or to eradicate mold.

Hamilton said repairs were inevitable at the 30-year-old complex, which he has owned for only a year.

Kevin Ingram, the code enforcement inspector who has been monitoring the progress of key repairs, said Hamilton took appropriate action once code enforcement revealed the safety hazards of the rusted, rickety steps and deck.

"He appeared to be pretty responsive," Ingram said, adding that he still awaits an update report from Hamilton's engineers. "Other than I didn't get a report in the timely manner that I would like, I'm pleased with the work that's being done."

Hamilton said he will continue to upgrade the apartments, which he says he rents for between $385 and $610 a month, until code enforcement gives him a clean bill.

"It's nothing that I've neglected on purpose. The problems were there and existed before I bought them," he said. "We may have overlooked that when we were buying it."

The final two weeks

Both candidates say they'll continue to fiercely campaign down the stretch -- in person and on Eastern Kentucky television stations.

They have amassed similar campaign war chests -- about $76,000 each through April 18. Turner reported had $68,000 left heading into the final month of the race, while Hamilton had more than $54,000 on hand, according to Kentucky Registry of Election Finance records.

Turner is expected to receive endorsements this weekend from prominent Floyd County Democrats and local officials, including some magistrates and the sheriff, Stumbo said.

Hamilton said he thinks some of those officials will still vote for him and adds that he's used to being "up against the establishment."

Both candidates say they'll win on May 20. But, after the razor-thin margin last time, neither would guess how close the race would be.

"I'm not going to predict that," Turner said. "I was a basketball coach, so I'm not going to go out on a limb."

JOHNNY RAY TURNER

Party: Democrat

Born: Sept. 19, 1949

Residence: Drift

Occupation: Consultant and lobbyist for Codell Construction Co.; retired teacher and coach

Education: Bachelor's and master's degrees from Morehead State University

Family: Wife, Linda; two grown daughters

Public office: State Senate, 2001 to present; Senate Democratic caucus chairman, 2003 to present

Why I'm the best candidate: "I've got experience and my position in leadership puts me in a good position when it comes time to work on the budget."

ERIC SHANE HAMILTON

Party: Democrat

Born: Jan. 16, 1962

Residence: Garrett

Occupation: Business owner; owner of rental property in Lexington and Eastern Kentucky

Education: Attended Alice Lloyd College and Hazard Community College

Family: Wife, Lois; two children

Public office: Ran unsuccessfully for state Senate in 2004

Why I'm the best candidate: "I will listen to a broader spectrum of people. Our government used to be of the people, by the people, for the people, and it seems to me to be of the few, by the few and for the few."

Reach Ryan Alessi in the Frankfort bureau at (859) 231-1303 or 1-800-950-6397, Ext. 1303.