2024 election recap: Here’s who won and who lost in Lexington council races
The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council will look different next year, with five newcomers on the 15-member council.
Two incumbents were defeated Tuesday, while two incumbent councilwomen successfully held off challengers. Two races involved open seats.
It will also be historic. Emma Curtis became the first openly transgender person to be elected to Lexington city council on Tuesday — and the first transgender person elected to a city office in Kentucky.
Come January, the council will also have two people younger than 30 — Curtis, 28, and Tyler Morton, 26 — in another big change for the council. No one on the current council is younger than 30.
One of the new faces on the council come January is Amy Beasley, who was the only candidate to file for the 8th Council District seat. Beasley will replace retiring Councilman Fred Brown The 8th Council District includes neighborhoods around the Tates Creek schools campus.
There were six contested council races Tuesday. All council races are nonpartisan. Council members serve two-year terms.
1st District
Tyler Morton, a former council aide, beat incumbent Councilwoman Tayna Fogle in the 1st District race.
According to unofficial results Morton received 58% of the vote compared to Fogle’s 42%.
Fogle was first elected in 2022. Morton has promised to immediately start working to address homelessness, gun safety and traffic safety and understand the root causes of those problems.
The 1st Council District includes parts of downtown Lexington north of Main Street and extends to Interstate 75. It encompasses neighborhoods along Newtown Pike, North Broadway and North Limestone.
2nd District
Councilwoman Shayla Lynch will return for another two years after defeating challenger Jacques Wigginton.
Lynch received 63% of the vote. Wigginton received 37%, according to unofficial results.
A lawyer who has spent two decades working for nonprofits, Lynch has said she wants to focus on infrastructure improvements in the 2nd District and continue her work advocating for more affordable housing solutions.
The 2nd Council District includes neighborhoods in the Georgetown and Leestown Road corridors.
4th District
Challenger Emma Curtis defeated Councilwoman Brenda Monarrez in the contentious 4th District race.
Curtis received 52% of the vote. Monarrez received 48%, according to unofficial results.
Curtis has said she wants to tackle problems on Nicholasville Road and do more to address Lexington’s affordable housing needs.
Monarrez was first elected in 2022. Her tenure on council has not been without controversy. A Fayette Circuit judge entered a three-year protection order against the first-term councilwoman in October after a fellow councilwoman accused Monarrez of being sexually aggressive toward her twice over three years.
The order barred Monarrez from entering city hall until 2027. Monarrez has been attending council meetings virtually.
The 4th Council District includes neighborhoods south of New Circle Road between Nicholasville and Tates Creek roads.
5th District
Councilwoman Liz Sheehan won a third term Tuesday.
Sheehan, who was first elected in 2020, received 60% of the vote compared to challenger Meredith Price’s 40%, according to unofficial results.
Sheehan is a faculty member in the department of psychology at the University of Kentucky. She previously won re-election to the seat in 2022.
Sheehan has helped shepherd some of the council’s most complex legislation, including ordinances regulating short-term rentals and complete streets. She has pledged to continue to work on affordable housing and homelessness during her third term.
The 5th Council District includes many downtown neighborhoods including Chevy Chase and Idle Hour.
7th District
Joseph Hale bested Heather Hadi in the 7th Council District race.
Hale received 55% of the vote compared to Hadi’s 45%, according to unofficial results.
The seat was open after incumbent Councilman Preston Worley announced last year he would not run for re-election.
Hale said he wants to hear from all areas of the district, and he said getting out and talking to people was an important part of his campaign.
“District 7 is a broad district,” he said, noting that safety might be a top concern for one part of the district, while another area might be more interested in parks and bike trails. “One issue isn’t bigger than the other.”
The 7th District encompasses the areas of Richmond Road and Athens-Boonesboro Road, including neighborhoods around Woodhill and Codell drives, Squires Road and Hays Boulevard.
12th District
In the other open seat up for grabs Tuesday, Hil Boone beat Chad Walker to represent Lexington’s rural district, which includes areas outside the urban service boundary.
Boone, the owner of Boonedogs, received 64% of the vote compared to Walker, who received 36%.
Boone is a farmer and business owner who has said he will serve as “a truly independent voice focused on what’s best for District 12.”
Boone has said one of his top priorities will be protecting Lexington’s green belt from development.
This story was originally published November 6, 2024 at 8:27 AM.
