Floyd to drop 15th District Senate bid, will file to keep state House seat

By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette

Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012, 9 a.m. — State Rep. David Floyd will drop his bid for the 15th District state senate seat in the wake of Tuesday’s ruling by Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd throwing out the recently crafted redistricting maps as unconstitutional.

DAVID FLOYD

The ruling resets the districts for state House and Senate districts back to the 2002 lines. The ruling means Nelson County is no longer part of the 15th senate District and returns to state Sen. Jimmy Higdon’s 14th District.

Floyd told 1320 WBRT Wednesday he planned to drop his senate bid and file to keep his 50th District house seat. He will file the paperwork Thursday, he said.

Republican Donna Pegago told WBRT she will withdraw from the race if Floyd files for reelection.  Shepherd’s ruling set Friday, Feb. 10 as the deadline to file for state house and senate races.

The other candidates who filed for the 15th District senate seat are also expected to withdraw from the race since the former district boundaries do not include Nelson or Bullitt counties.

Floyd will be filing his third set of candidacy papers in less than a month. He told the Associated Press yesterday, “I can decide to be frustrated or entertained. I choose to be entertained.”

Redistricting takes place every 10 years in order to create districts of nearly equal population. Population shifts that surfaced in the 2010 census required the Geneeral Assembly revise legislative and congressional districts.

Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo says an appeal is likely in the ongoing court battle over redistricting.

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