Kentucky
Another Kentucky House candidate disqualified for error in filing papers • Kentucky Lantern
A judge has removed Democrat Richard Henderson as a candidate for the state House in Shelby County because of errors in his candidacy filing papers.
The action July 30 by Shelby Circuit Judge Michelle Brummer at the request of Shelby County Judge-Executive Dan Ison leaves Republican incumbent Jennifer Decker unopposed in the Nov. 5 election for the state’s 58th House District. The district covers most of Shelby County.
Henderson, an IT employee who had no opposition in the May Democratic primary, was the first Black Democrat to seek the seat.
He said he will not appeal the judge’s order, “but we will come back in 2026.”
He said he plans to run again in two years for the House seat. “It will be a great opportunity then to flip this seat back to Democratic, especially with the success Democrats expect in keeping the White House this November.”
Decker, of Waddy, did not respond to calls for comment about Brummer’s order.
Ison has said Decker did not ask him to file the lawsuit, which he did with Shelby County citizen Janrose Stillwell,
Ison said he was involved in a similar case years ago and decided that it was his duty as Shelby County’s top Republican official to challenge Henderson’s papers.
Henderson’s attorney, Fielding Ballard of Shelbyville, questioned that, saying Ison filed the lawsuit after Henderson handed out “all his campaign cards” at Shelbyville’s annual Dogwood Festival in the spring.
In their lawsuit against Henderson, Ison and Stillwell claimed Henderson violated the state law that requires a candidate’s notification petition to be signed by the candidate and “by not less than two registered voters of the same party.”
Henderson’s candidacy papers were not signed by a single registered Democratic voter, said the legal challenge against him.
The lawsuit said Adam Muntzinger and Taunya Muntzinger were the two citizens who signed Henderson’s papers and both were registered Republicans in the district at the time They changed their party affiliation to Democrat in March of this year.
Henderson, in a response to the court, denied the allegations and said he believed the persons signing his candidacy papers were registered voters of his party. given “from all conversations and statements” he had with them over the years.
Judge Brummer in her four-page order noted that recent guidance on the issue was provided by the Kentucky Court of Appeals in a similar Jefferson County case.
Ison’s attorney, state Rep. Jason Nemes of Louisville, did not return calls seeking comment.
Ballard, Henderson’s attorney, said Brummer’s ruling was expected, given the recent Kentucky Supreme Court decision involving the case in Jefferson County.
In early June, Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Laurance B. VanMeter issued a one-page order that said incumbent state Rep. Nima Kulkarni of Louisville was disqualified as a candidate in this May’s Democratic election for the 40th District House seat.
The Supreme Court order in the Kulkarni case came one day after the state’s highest court held a hearing on her eligibility to run in the May primary election. She handily won the primary and had no opposition for the November general election.
Kentucky Supreme Court disqualifies Kulkarni in state House race
VanMeter’s order said a majority of the court upheld the decision by the Kentucky Court of Appeals that Kulkarni should be disqualified from the race because of errors in her candidacy filing papers.
He said the order was issued for the benefit of the parties involved and that the Supreme Court would issue an opinion “in due course.”
It is not clear what will be done to make sure the Jefferson County district has a state representative for the next two years, beginning Jan. 1. Kulkarni was the only one on the ballot.
Kulkarni did not return phone calls about the situation.
Steve Megerle, a Covington attorney representing former state Democratic Rep. Dennis Horlander, who filed the suit against Kulkarni, said, “We are waiting for the Supreme Court to say something about what will happen.”
He said Horlander is prepared to seek legal action to make sure that Kulkarni’s name is not on the November ballot. He noted that ballots are to be prepared by mid-August.
Power forward has been one of the positions that Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats have to fill with Andrija Jelavic and Mo Dioubate gone. The two players that Pope has had on campus at the power forward position are Syracuse’s Donnie Freeman and Colorado’s Sebastian Rancik. Both are really good players, but Freeman is better by a wide margin.
It has felt that entire time that Kentucky wanted Rancik as the backup to Freeman or a backup plan if they weren’t able to land Freeman. Well, Rancik just picked Florida State, so perhaps this is a sign that the Wildcats will land Freeman.
Big Blue Nation was torn on Rancik, but I do believe he would have been a really solid backup power forward. I personally didn’t want him to be the starting four for this team. It is clear that he wanted to go somewhere where he could be the guy at the four, so he will be heading to the ACC to play for FSU.
Now that Kentucky has missed on Rancik, it is very important that the Wildcats land Freeman soon. The problem with waiting on some of these players is the fact that the portal isn’t slowing down. If Pope targets two power forwards and misses on both of them, most of the good fours in the portal will be gone.
There will be some panic in Lexington if the Wildcats are not able to land Freeman, but I do believe the Wildcats are in a good spot to land the elite power forward. From the beginning, Freeman has been my top player for Kentucky in the portal, as he, plus Malachi Moreno, will give the Wildcats an elite frontcourt.
If Pope is able to land Freeman and Tyran Stokes to pair with Zoom Diallo, Alex Wilkins, Moreno, and Kam Williams, this could be the start of a really good team in Lexington. Hopefully, an announcement for where Freeman will transfer comes soon, and hopefully, this will be to play for Pope at Kentucky.
Fans of rival teams will say Pope “whiffed” on Rancik, but if this whiff was because the Wildcats are set to land Freeman soon, then it was more than worth it for Kentucky. If the Wildcats are able to land Freeman, it will officially be time for Big Blue Nation to start getting excited about the 2026-27 season. I expect a decision from Freeman to come within the next day or two.
Rancik would have been a solid backup four in Lexington but Freeman has been the guy from the beggining for this staff so if Kentucky lands him all is well. If the staff misses on Freeman not landing Rancik will look bad.
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Kentucky
Kentucky is poised to land either Donnie Freeman or Sebastian Rancik this weekend, per report
Jones posted on Twitter that “Kentucky will have (absent a major change) either Freeman or Rancik by tomorrow,” while also noting the Wildcats still need to add another shooter and another big to round out the roster.
One of the top targets is Donnie Freeman, a 6-foot-9, 205-pound sophomore forward transferring from Syracuse. Freeman arrived in Lexington on Tuesday night and began his visit on Wednesday before leaving without a commitment. While there was concern he could land at UConn, that visit has since been canceled, leaving Kentucky and St. John’s as the top teams.
Freeman averaged 16.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game last season, while adding nearly a block and a steal per contest. He shot 47.4% from the field but 30.2% from 3-point range across 23 games.
The other option is Sebastian Rancik, a 6-foot-11, 220-pound sophomore forward transferring from Colorado. Rancik visited Kentucky starting Wednesday through Thursday and brings a versatile skill set, averaging 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2 assists per game while shooting 33.1% from 3.
Either Freeman or Rancik would provide a significant boost at the power forward position for head coach Mark Pope. Kentucky has already added guards Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins in the portal.
Kentucky football coach Will Stein reflects on new position
Will Stein was officially introduced to fans and media as the head coach for the Kentucky Wildcats, replacing Mark Stoops.
LEXINGTON — Kentucky football had its first spring game under new coach Will Stein at Kroger Field on Saturday.
The offense, in blue jerseys, had its moments. So too the defense, donning white uniforms.
Ultimately, the blue squad earned a 23-18 victory in a game called just after noon because of inclement weather.
Stein admitted he “got emotional” as he charged onto the field prior to kickoff.
“I know it wasn’t a real game, but when I ran on the field, I definitely — man, I felt it,” he said. “It was like a wave running over me. And very, very, just cool.”
While it doesn’t count in the standings, Stein walked away pleased.
“I think we got a lot of really good work,” he said. “That’s the goal of spring is to improve with fundamentals and technique, learn how to practice, learn what winning edges that we need throughout spring to go into summer and fall and prepare the team for play. And we came out of the scrimmage clean. There (were) no injuries, which to me, that’s the biggest win of the day. I could (not) care less about the score.
“If we come out clean, that’s good. The Wildcats won.”
New starting QB Kenny Minchey looked about as expected, with sharp passes evened out by moments of inconsistency. Martels Carter Jr., a defensive back who is lining up at running back this spring, scored a touchdown and had several nice runs.
And the defense forced multiple three-and-outs and also picked off one Minchey pass on a two-point conversion.
This story will be updated.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
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