Current Barren County Circuit Court Clerk Krissie Coe Fields. Photo courtesy of Krissie Coe Fields.
By MICHAEL CRIMMINS
Glasgow News 1
This article has been updated with additional information as of 6:18 p.m. May 20.
Krissie Coe Fields, the current Barren County Circuit Court clerk, announced Monday, May 20, that she has accepted an appointment to the Kentucky Parole Board and, as a result of the appointment, has withdrawn her name from consideration in the upcoming November General Election.
Coe Fields initially filed to run for re-election as circuit court clerk on Nov. 30, 2023, but with the acceptance of the full-time position on the parole board ends her 18-year tenure in the position — Coe Fields was originally appointed Barren County Circuit Court Clerk in 2006.
This appointment ends her combined 28 years in various positions in Barren County government including six on the Glasgow City Council and three-and-a-half as a Barren County magistrate.
“It has been a true honor and privilege and joy to serve,” Coe Fields wrote in a press release. “I have always taken pride in being accessible to citizens by not just attending events during election time and have always been available for phone calls. I am thankful for the support and friendships I have made throughout the 28 years.”
The press release further states that Coe Fields “will not rule out a return to the Political Scene” in the future, and she pledged to take the $5,000 that would have gone to the circuit clerk campaign and “contribute it to local charitable organizations.”
According to an executive order signed by Gov. Andy Beshear her term on the board will begin July 1, 2024 and run through June 30, 2028 and she will replace Sharon Hardesty of Lexington, whose term on the board is expiring at the end of June. With her appointment beginning before the new clerk is sworn in, Coe Fields said she will inform the chief justice, which is currently Kelly Thompson, who will then work with the chief circuit judge and fill the vacancy.
According to Ashton Harrison, election coordinator at the Barren County Clerk’s office, Coe Fields has yet to file the proper withdrawal papers to get her name removed from the Nov. 5 election. Coe Fields said she has no set a date when she will file the paperwork but plans to “sometime before [her] appointment date.”
The announcement by Coe Fields leaves her Republican challenger, Julie Wright Jolly, who officially announced her candidacy on Jan. 3, unopposed in the upcoming general election.
However, even before Coe Fields announcement, the elected office of the circuit clerk was not going to appear on the primary ballot as neither had challengers within their own parties to contend.
The primary ballot will only include the selection of a presidential candidate and a U.S. Representative for the 2nd congressional district.
Voting in the primary election is set to open Tuesday, May 21, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. at any of the nine voting locations scattered throughout the county. Voting locations include Barren County High School gymnasium, Cave Area Conference Center, Austin Tracy Volunteer Fire Department, Haywood Volunteer Fire Department, Hiseville Elementary School, Park City Lions Club, Temple Hill Elementary School, Beckton Community Center and Glasgow Middle School.
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