KY Gov.-elect Beshear picks four familiar faces to move with him to governor’s office
Kentucky Gov.-elect Andy Beshear picked four staffers from his attorney general’s office to help lead his administration when he is sworn in Dec. 10 as Kentucky’s 63rd governor.
All four of his initial appointments had “a four-year audition,” Beshear said in announcing them Thursday at a news conference in the Capitol.
J. Michael Brown of Louisville, who is Beshear’s deputy attorney general, will be the new governor’s cabinet secretary. Brown will lead a team of yet-unnamed cabinet secretaries in carrying out the work of the executive branch of state government.
Brown, who is chairman of Beshear’s transition team, said his new role is the highlight of his career. He was secretary of the Justice Cabinet for former Gov. Steve Beshear and is a former district court judge in Jefferson County.
La Tasha Buckner of Lexington, an assistant attorney general and co-chairwoman of the transition team, will be general counsel for the new governor. A native of Glasgow and a graduate of the University of Kentucky law school, she has legal experience with several federal, state and administrative bodies.
She said the governor’s office “sets the tone for an entire administration so it’s our pledge to create a state government that’s open, accessible and responsive to our citizens.”
Travis Mayo of Louisville will join Buckner as deputy general counsel. A native of Maysville and a graduate of Northern Kentucky University Chase College of Law, Mayo is executive director of the attorney general’s civil and environmental law division.
Crystal Staley of Lexington will be director of communications for the governor’s office. She now holds that position in the attorney general’s office.
A native of Nicholas County, Staley has 12 years of government communications experience. She has a Master’s degree from the University of Kentucky’s School for Public Policy and Administration. She called the new appointment “an honor.”
Salaries for the new appointees will not be known until they are officially appointed after Beshear is sworn in as governor.
Beshear did not announce a chief of staff for his office. He said he will make another announcement Tuesday and then more after Thanksgiving.
Asked if state House Minority Leader Rocky Adkins, D-Sandy Hook, will have a position in his administration, Beshear demurred and said more information would come later.
Also with Beshear at the news conference was Lt. Gov.-elect Jacqueline Coleman. Responding to a question, Beshear said with a smile that she would hire her own staff and pledged not to fire any of them.
Outgoing Gov. Matt Bevin has been sued by his lieutenant governor, Jenean Hampton, for dismissing two of her staffers. She filed an appeal this week with the Kentucky Court of Appeals after a Franklin Circuit Court judge sided with Bevin.
This story was originally published November 21, 2019 at 5:11 PM.
