Democratic State Senator appointed clerk of KY’s largest county
David Yates, one of the few Democrats in the Kentucky state senate, will replace the recently deceased Jefferson County clerk, Louisville Mayor Greenberg announced Friday.
Greenberg appointed Yates to start the new role next week.
“David is a proven leader from the South End who has served this community in various capacities for more than a decade,” said Greenberg wrote in a statement. “I know from personal experience that he’s focused on doing the right thing for this community every single day.”
Yates will have to resign his post serving Senate District 37, as state law forbids General Assembly members from serving as an officer of any local government.
He had been running for the clerk’s office, which was held by Republican Bobbie Holsclaw for more than 25 years until her September death, since May.
“Thank you, Mayor Greenberg, for the faith and trust you’ve placed in me with this appointment. At the heart of the County Clerk’s office is one of the most sacred responsibilities we have in a democracy: running free, fair and transparent elections. I promise to safeguard that trust with everything I have,” Yates wrote in a statement.
Yates is the minority whip of the Senate Democratic caucus, which shrunk to just six after Sen. Robin Webb of Grayson switched parties to the GOP earlier this year. Six of 38 state Senators marked a historically low number not seen by any major party since the late 1800s.
That will leave just one Democrat from Lexington, Caucus Chair Reggie Thomas, and four from Louisville in the state senate.
There are signs Republicans may seek to flip Yates’ district in a special election, sinking the Democrats even further.
Though the current state Senate map largely silos deep blue urban districts from bright red rural and suburban ones, Yates’ South Louisville district is the lightest shade of blue of any of them. Elections analysis website Dave’s Redistricting calculated that Democrats had a roughly 15-point advantage there over the course of the 2016-2020 elections.
Over the past few election cycles, multiple House Democrats from that region have either lost their seats or come within a tiny margin of losing them.
Yates, who served on Louisville Metro Council before election to the Senate in 2020, won his first race unopposed in the general election. In 2024, he defeated Republican Calvin Leach by about 20 points. He told the Herald-Leader in an interview earlier this year he believes the seat will stay blue.
Since Yates will have to resign before the General Assembly kicks off at the start of the year, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear will issue a writ of special election to replace him, meaning Beshear can pick the day on which a special election is held to replace Yates.
The regular elections for Jefferson County Clerk will be held in 2026, with a primary in May and a general election in November. Roz Welch, a Louisville resident with Democratic ties, had, like Yates, also announced a bid for the office.
