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Last weekend's KDP Convention in Lexington was an interesting experience for this first-timer. We drove up Friday and attended the Jefferson-Jackson fundraising dinner. While standing in line for our tickets I noticed some subtle maneuvering taking place.
People were feeling out the competition and trying to place themselves as the person to beat for things like Central Steering Committee and National Delegate. Moving into the large hall one was greeted by a scrum at the bar, as we all tried to wash away the remnants of a long primary season and to help wash down some of our wounded pride.
Apparently this was the theme of the weekend. Jennifer Moore, KDP Chairwoman, got everyone seated and spoke of all of us coming together to support our candidates, and forgetting our differences to rally around our common goals.
We heard from Gov. Steve Beshear who reiterated this point, and added that President Obama is going to have a hard time fixing what the Republicans have broken, just as he is having a hard time fixing Kentucky. Gov. Beshear reminded everyone in the room that we are part of the team and that it is our job to make sure that Democrats carry a majority in the House and Senate this year as well.
The following morning we were back at the Convention Center bright and early to set up booths and get credentials. Most of the day was spent watching more of this subtle- and in some cases not-so-subtle- maneuvering of committee hopefuls. Just like any other election, those who came organized prevailed.
About 3 pm we all moved back into the hall and listened to some more speakers. The unity theme carried on with quite a few speakers. Interestingly only one US Congressional candidate was invited to speak, a rising star named Heather Ryan from here in Kentucky's First District. Heather's speech was by far the best of the day. The crowd was cheering on its feet many times in her five minutes on stage, as she reminded us why it's important to have a democratic majority in the House, and why no one should be afraid of their elected representatives. She walked off the stage to chants of, "Heather! Heather!" and the largest standing ovation of the day.
Sadly, US Senate candidate, Bruce Lunsford's speech left something to be desired following Heather. He brought the momentum to a screeching halt with stories of people committing suicide, and the victim of a car accident. There is something to be said for speaking with notes.
Gov. Beshear and Lt. Gov. Mongiardo were presented with rocking chairs from Laurel County Democrats to "Rock, and think," about the issues they face.
The speakers kept coming, with Attorney General Jack Conway, State Auditor Crit Luallen, and many others. More elections were held, but people were getting tired and wandering out towards their cars for the long drive home. People, including myself, made sure to shake hands with the big names wandering around and headed out, feeling fired up, and ready to roll in this next election cycle.
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