Lexington mayor taps familiar face to fill vacant council seat
Mayor Linda Gorton appointed Lisa Higgins-Hord to fill a vacant seat on the 15-member Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council on Friday.
This is the second time in five years Higgins-Hord, a University of Kentucky administrator, has been appointed to fill an unexpired term in the same council district.
Higgins-Hord was sworn in Friday by Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Pamela Goodwine, who is also Higgins-Hord’s aunt. Higgins-Hord will attend council meetings starting next week.
She will serve the remaining 16 months of former Councilwoman Denise Gray’s term, which ends December 2026. The filing deadline to run for the seat and all city elected offices is Jan. 9. The race is nonpartisan. Council district representatives serve two-year terms.
“During my time on council, I will be committed to working alongside my fellow council members, at-large council members, the Vice Mayor, the mayor’s administration and city staff to lead with integrity and foster consensus around issues of critical importance to our constituents,” said Higgins-Hord.
“I am firmly rooted in providing the necessary assistance to the 6th District, keeping safety at the forefront and being thoughtful in my decision-making, while ensuring citizens are updated on matters within the district.”
Gray, who was elected in 2020 and 2022, resigned in July to take a job in Wisconsin.
The 6th Council District includes neighborhoods along Winchester Road, including the area around Hamburg, one of Lexington’s busiest shopping districts.
6th Council District seat has high turnover
The council seat has seen a lot of turnover in the past five years. This is the second time Gorton, who is in her second term, has appointed a replacement for the seat. She has tapped Higgins-Hord both times.
Former Councilwoman Angela Evans stepped down from the 6th District seat in 2020 to attend graduate school. Gorton appointed Higgins-Hord to finish Evans’ unexpired term.
Higgins-Hord did not run for re-election. Evans was later elected Fayette County attorney in 2022.
David Kloiber was elected to the seat in 2020 and held the seat until he ran unsuccessfully against Gorton in the mayor’s race in 2022.
Higgins-Hord said Friday she has not yet decided if she will run for the seat. She said she was going to determine if she could serve her constituents and continue to work at UK, where she is an assistant vice president of community health.
“Then I will make my decision,” Higgins-Hord said.
Gorton received 15 applications for the open council position.
Gorton said it was Higgins-Hord’s familiarity with the 6th District and deep connections to the community that set her apart. Higgins-Hord has served on multiple boards, including the Lexington Children’s Museum, the 250Lex Commission, the Blue Grass Community Foundation Board and the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame Committee.
“She stood out to me because of the depth of her experience and involvement in the community,” Gorton said.
Gorton encouraged the 14 other people who applied for the appointment to continue to be involved in city government.
“I have strongly encouraged each of them to stay involved and to serve on one of our boards and commissions,” Gorton said.
Gray endorsed Christian Wellmann, a representative for the Central Midwest Carpenters, as her replacement. He advocates for fair labor laws and practices across the construction industry and has lived in the 6th Council District since 2017.
According to Kentucky Registry of Election Finance records, no one has filed paperwork to start raising funds to run in the 6th Council District.
This story was originally published August 22, 2025 at 2:21 PM.
