Herald-Leader endorsement: Lexington’s 93rd District has an excellent choice to make

It is grueling to be a Democrat in Kentucky’s GOP-dominated General Assembly, and even worse to be new at your job.

That’s what Rep. Adrielle Camuel, D-Lexington, found out in her first six months on the job after being elected last fall in a special election to replace the late Lamin Swann. She was called out for some missteps; she promised her first legislation would be to repeal the draconian anti-LGBTQ SB 150 from 2023, only to find out that others already had that effort underway.

But Camuel worked in front and behind the scenes to file good bills and push for even more. We believe she deserves a full term in the state House and endorse her candidacy.

Her opponent, Sarah Ritter, is a young and dynamic candidate, part of a new vanguard of young Democrats across Kentucky looking to win seats at every level of government. We look forward to seeing her future in Kentucky politics.

But for now, the 93rd District is in good hands with Camuel. In this session, she filed numerous bills on such topics as education, wage theft, bonds to require coal companies to pay their workers in bankruptcy, and yes, a bill to repeal SB 150. That most of those bills went unheard is due to the pettiness of the ruling party.

She was part of a group of Democratic women who walked out of a committee meeting to protest anti-abortion language that was tacked onto a Republican maternal health bill. That measure made it into law without the unfriendly language.

For now and into the next session, Camuel says she will be working on her perennial topics: Public education, reproductive and LGBTQ rights and better elder-care resources for Kentucky’s aging population.

As a public school employee, she is particularly alarmed by —and will be fighting against — an upcoming ballot measure to change the Constitution to divert public school money to private schools.

“Public education is the cornerstone of any thriving society,” she told the editorial board. “From the foundation of our kids to our economic development, public schools are essential.”

Camuel said she would also be working on legislation that is good for all Kentuckians and can be created in a bipartisan manner, like the maternity health bill, otherwise known as the “momnibus” legislation.

“The momnibus bill didn’t happen over night,” she said. “It’s the same with issues like elder care, it’s going to take time and we may have to do it incrementally, but it’s something every Kentuckian can support.”

Camuel will do a good job for constituents in House District 93.