With no statewide election Tuesday, why are Ky. schools closed for Election Day?

There is not a statewide election Tuesday, so why are schools closed for Election Day?

Under state law, school districts in Kentucky must be closed on election days if schools in their community are used as polling places, said Fayette Public Schools’ spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall.

When planning the instructional calendar each year, the Fayette district reserves both the regular and primary Election Day as days off for students.

While no elections were initially scheduled for Nov. 2, the day was set aside when the calendar was adopted on Nov. 23, 2020, in the event that a special election was necessary.

There are three special elections statewide — including one affecting only nine precincts in Fayette County — to fill open seats in the General Assembly. That’s why schools are closed in other counties in the state, Kentucky Department of Education spokeswoman Toni Konz said.

What Kentucky special elections are scheduled?

Some residents in Fayette Jessamine, Garrard, Mercer and Washington counties can vote Tuesday to fill a vacancy in the 22nd District of the Kentucky State Senate. The winner will fill the remainder of the term of Republican Tom Buford, which runs through 2022. Buford, of Nicholasville, served in the Senate from 1991 until his unexpected death July 6 at 72.

There are two other special elections. In House District 51, voters will replace Republican John “Bam” Carney of Campbellsville, who died July 17 at 51 after a lengthy battle with pancreatitis and infection, and voters in House District 89 will select a candidate to fill the seat of Republican Robert Goforth of East Bernstadt in Laurel County, who resigned Aug. 24 amid domestic violence charges.

This story was originally published November 2, 2021 at 6:51 AM.