Ron Lewis
Encyclopedia
Ronald E. "Ron" Lewis an American
politician
who was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives
from 1994–2009, representing the 2nd Congressional District of Kentucky
.
Lewis announced on January 29, 2008, that he would not run for an eighth term.
in Greenup County
in far northeastern Kentucky. He graduated from McKell High School in 1964. He attended Morehead State University
in Morehead
in Rowan County
from 1964 to 1967 and graduated from the University of Kentucky
at Lexington
in 1969 with a bachelor of arts
degree in history
and political science
. Lewis returned to Morehead in 1980 to earn a master's degree
in professional education
in 1981.
At twenty-one, Lewis worked in the 1967 gubernatorial campaign of Louie B. Nunn
of Glasgow
. Nunn's victory got Lewis a state job for a time and encouragement to run in 1971 for the Kentucky House of Representatives
in his native Greenup County. Though he lost the legislative race in a Democratic
year in Kentucky, Lewis maintained an interest in GOP
politics. In 1972, Lewis served briefly in the U.S. Navy, attending the Navy Officer Candidate School
in Pensacola, Florida
; a kidney
ailment resulted in a quick medical discharge .
Lewis worked in sales for several companies, including Ashland Oil, before teaching for five years at Watterson College
in Louisville
, Kentucky, having begun in 1980. (The school closed in the 1990s.) He also was ordained as a Southern Baptist minister in 1980, having served as pastor for the historic White Mills Baptist Church, after attending the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
in Louisville. In 1985 Lewis opened a religious bookstore, Alpha and Omega Bookstore, in Elizabethtown
. In the early 1980s, he was a pastor at Friendship Baptist Church, located outside Hodgenville
.
Lewis has been married to Kayi Gambill Lewis since 1966. They live in Cecilia
, near Elizabethtown, and have two children.
in the general election in November 1994. The Second District was predominantly Democratic
in terms of voter registration, and Lewis, named as a candidate by the state GOP leadership and Senator
Mitch McConnell
, was considered somewhat of a "sacrificial lamb".
Natcher died in late March 1994, and a special election was called in May 1994 to replace him. In the special election, Lewis faced Joe Prather, a state senator from Hardin County, Kentucky
. Lewis got support from numerous national Republican sources and many religious conservative groups, enabling him to run a very strong campaign in a district that had not elected a Republican in 129 years. Lewis tied Prather to an unpopular Bill Clinton
and a proposal to raise taxes on tobacco
, the staple crop of the state. He also took advantage of the 2nd's socially conservative tilt.
In a major upset, Lewis defeated Prather by a 55-45 percent in an election with less than a 20 percent turnout. It was a result that many political pundits, as Larry J. Sabato noted in his Crystal Ball
newsletter, saw as a harbinger of the Republican gains in Congress in the regular election later that year. Lewis was elected to a full term that November, defeating Democrat David Adkisson with 60 percent of the vote.
One of the centerpieces of Lewis' 1994 campaign was term limits in Washington. He was one of five Republicans who signed a pledge committing themselves to a limited number of terms if elected. In 1998, Lewis sent a letter to 3,000 constituents in 1998 informing them he had changed his mind about running in 2002 and beyond. "I made a mistake in 1994, and I admit that. I had said I would not run past 2002," he told the Elizabethtown News Enterprise in October 1998.
In 2004, Lewis joined numerous Republican colleagues in sponsoring legislation that would allow lawmakers to override certain Supreme Court decisions by a two-thirds vote of the House and Senate. Lewis likened his proposal to the existing right of Congress to override a presidential veto with a two-thirds majority.
Lewis was known for his constituent services. After the closure of the Fruit of the Loom
plant in Campbellsville
in Taylor County
in 1998, Lewis obtained $8.5 million earmarked for Kentucky Route 210. "If we had not had that road widened, we would not have secured Amazon.com
in Campbellsville" to fill the void in employment, said John Chowning, a Lewis friend and administrator at Campbellsville University
. In 2004, Lewis honored the Campbellsville author Betty Jane Gorin-Smith
as "historian-laureate" of the Kentucky Heartland region.
, a former member of the Kentucky House of Representatives. Weaver gave Lewis his first credible challenge in a decade, holding him to only 55 percent of the vote.
also filed for the race. The decision shocked and angered many prominent Kentucky Republicans, Lewis said he was tired of splitting his time between Washington and Kentucky, and that serving in Congress had not been as encouraging since Democrats gained the majority in 2007.
On the Democratic side, State Senator David Boswell
of Daviess County
and the Daviess County Judge-Executive Reid Haire both filed. Guthrie emerged the winner over primary rival Daniel London and then Boswell.
Lewis deposited his congressional papers at Baptist-affiliated Campbellsville University.
In 2010, Lewis announced his support for Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson
in the race to fill the United States Senate
seat of retiring Republican Senator Jim Bunning
. Grayson lost the nomination to the eventual Senate winner, Republican Rand Paul
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
who was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from 1994–2009, representing the 2nd Congressional District of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
.
Lewis announced on January 29, 2008, that he would not run for an eighth term.
Early life, education, and career
Lewis was born in McKell near South ShoreSouth Shore, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,226 people, 539 households, and 335 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,916.9 people per square mile . There were 605 housing units at an average density of 945.9 per square mile...
in Greenup County
Greenup County, Kentucky
Greenup County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1804. As of 2000, the population was 36,891. Its county seat is Greenup. The county is named in honor of Christopher Greenup....
in far northeastern Kentucky. He graduated from McKell High School in 1964. He attended Morehead State University
Morehead State University
Morehead State University is a public, co-educational university located in Morehead, Kentucky, United States in the foothills of the Daniel Boone National Forest in Rowan County, midway between Lexington, Kentucky, and Huntington, West Virginia. The 2012 edition of "America's Best Colleges" by U.S...
in Morehead
Morehead, Kentucky
As of the census of 2010, there were 6,845 people, households, and families residing in the city. The population density was 726.2 people per square mile. There were 2,356 housing units at an average density of 253.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 93.2% White, 3.2% African...
in Rowan County
Rowan County, Kentucky
Rowan County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2010, the population was 23,333. Its county seat is Morehead. The county was created in 1856 from adjacent counties originally part of Mason county, and named for John Rowan, who represented Kentucky in the U.S...
from 1964 to 1967 and graduated from the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
at Lexington
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
in 1969 with a bachelor of arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
. Lewis returned to Morehead in 1980 to earn a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in professional education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
in 1981.
At twenty-one, Lewis worked in the 1967 gubernatorial campaign of Louie B. Nunn
Louie B. Nunn
Louie Broady Nunn was the 52nd governor of Kentucky. Elected in 1967, he was the first Republican elected to that office since Simeon Willis in 1943 and the last to hold it until the election of Ernie Fletcher in 2003....
of Glasgow
Glasgow, Kentucky
Glasgow is a city in and the county seat of Barren County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 14,200 at the 2000 census. The city is well-known for its annual Scottish Highland Games. In 2007, Barren County was named the number one rural place to live by Progressive Farmer magazine...
. Nunn's victory got Lewis a state job for a time and encouragement to run in 1971 for the Kentucky House of Representatives
Kentucky House of Representatives
The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a House district, except when necessary to preserve...
in his native Greenup County. Though he lost the legislative race in a Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
year in Kentucky, Lewis maintained an interest in GOP
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
politics. In 1972, Lewis served briefly in the U.S. Navy, attending the Navy Officer Candidate School
Officer Candidate School
Officer Candidate School or Officer Cadet School are institutions which train civilians and enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a commission as officers in the armed forces of a country....
in Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
; a kidney
Kidney
The kidneys, organs with several functions, serve essential regulatory roles in most animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are essential in the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid–base balance, and...
ailment resulted in a quick medical discharge .
Lewis worked in sales for several companies, including Ashland Oil, before teaching for five years at Watterson College
Watterson College
Watterson College was a private, for profit two-year vocational/technical school that operated in Southern California from 1915-1995.It offered classes and training in various entry-level professions such as business, computers, word processing, medical assisting, retailing, and paralegal services...
in Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, Kentucky, having begun in 1980. (The school closed in the 1990s.) He also was ordained as a Southern Baptist minister in 1980, having served as pastor for the historic White Mills Baptist Church, after attending the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary , located in Louisville, Kentucky, is the oldest of the six seminaries affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention . The seminary was founded in 1859, at Greenville, South Carolina. After being closed during the Civil War, it moved in 1877 to Louisville...
in Louisville. In 1985 Lewis opened a religious bookstore, Alpha and Omega Bookstore, in Elizabethtown
Elizabethtown, Kentucky
Elizabethtown is a city in and the county seat of Hardin County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 28,531 at the 2010 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in the state...
. In the early 1980s, he was a pastor at Friendship Baptist Church, located outside Hodgenville
Hodgenville, Kentucky
Hodgenville is a city in and the county seat of LaRue County, Kentucky, United States. It sits along the North Fork of the Nolin River. The population was 2,874 at the 2000 census...
.
Lewis has been married to Kayi Gambill Lewis since 1966. They live in Cecilia
Cecilia, Kentucky
Cecilia is an unincorporated community in Hardin County, Kentucky, United States. It is located approximately west of Elizabethtown, the county seat...
, near Elizabethtown, and have two children.
1994 election
In 1994, Lewis filed to run against longtime Democratic William H. NatcherWilliam Huston Natcher
William Huston Natcher was a Democratic congressman, serving in the United States House of Representatives from 1953 to 1994.-Early life:...
in the general election in November 1994. The Second District was predominantly Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
in terms of voter registration, and Lewis, named as a candidate by the state GOP leadership and Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Mitch McConnell
Mitch McConnell
Addison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
, was considered somewhat of a "sacrificial lamb".
Natcher died in late March 1994, and a special election was called in May 1994 to replace him. In the special election, Lewis faced Joe Prather, a state senator from Hardin County, Kentucky
Hardin County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 94,174 people, 34,497 households, and 25,355 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 37,673 housing units at an average density of...
. Lewis got support from numerous national Republican sources and many religious conservative groups, enabling him to run a very strong campaign in a district that had not elected a Republican in 129 years. Lewis tied Prather to an unpopular Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and a proposal to raise taxes on tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, the staple crop of the state. He also took advantage of the 2nd's socially conservative tilt.
In a major upset, Lewis defeated Prather by a 55-45 percent in an election with less than a 20 percent turnout. It was a result that many political pundits, as Larry J. Sabato noted in his Crystal Ball
Sabato's Crystal Ball
Sabato’s Crystal Ball is a free, nonpartisan weekly online newsletter and comprehensive website in the United States that analyzes the current American political scene and predicts electoral outcomes for U.S House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, governors, and U.S. president races...
newsletter, saw as a harbinger of the Republican gains in Congress in the regular election later that year. Lewis was elected to a full term that November, defeating Democrat David Adkisson with 60 percent of the vote.
One of the centerpieces of Lewis' 1994 campaign was term limits in Washington. He was one of five Republicans who signed a pledge committing themselves to a limited number of terms if elected. In 1998, Lewis sent a letter to 3,000 constituents in 1998 informing them he had changed his mind about running in 2002 and beyond. "I made a mistake in 1994, and I admit that. I had said I would not run past 2002," he told the Elizabethtown News Enterprise in October 1998.
Political positions
According to the non-partisan website TheMiddleClass.org, Ron Lewis has consistently voted against tax increases and expansion of social programs.In 2004, Lewis joined numerous Republican colleagues in sponsoring legislation that would allow lawmakers to override certain Supreme Court decisions by a two-thirds vote of the House and Senate. Lewis likened his proposal to the existing right of Congress to override a presidential veto with a two-thirds majority.
Lewis was known for his constituent services. After the closure of the Fruit of the Loom
Fruit of the Loom
Fruit of the Loom is an American company which manufactures clothing, particularly underwear. The company's world headquarters is in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It is currently a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway.-Company profile:...
plant in Campbellsville
Campbellsville, Kentucky
Campbellsville is a city in Taylor County, Kentucky, United States. The population within city limits was 10,498 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Taylor County, and the home of Campbellsville University...
in Taylor County
Taylor County, Kentucky
Taylor County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 22,927. Its county seat is Campbellsville. The county is named for President Zachary Taylor, who served from 1849 to 1850. Taylor is a moist county...
in 1998, Lewis obtained $8.5 million earmarked for Kentucky Route 210. "If we had not had that road widened, we would not have secured Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
in Campbellsville" to fill the void in employment, said John Chowning, a Lewis friend and administrator at Campbellsville University
Campbellsville University
Campbellsville University, also known as CU, is a private university in Campbellsville, Kentucky, the seat of Taylor County. Founded as Russell Creek Academy, a Baptist institution, the university currently enrolls more than 3,000 students and is open to students of all denominations...
. In 2004, Lewis honored the Campbellsville author Betty Jane Gorin-Smith
Betty Jane Gorin-Smith
Betty Jane Mitchell Gorin-Smith, known as Betty Jane Gorin-Smith , is an independent historian from Campbellsville in Taylor County in central Kentucky, best known for her book Morgan Is Coming!': Confederate Raiders in the Heartland of Kentucky, a study of Confederate General John Hunt Morgan's...
as "historian-laureate" of the Kentucky Heartland region.
1996–2004 campaigns
Lewis won a second full term in 1996 with 58 percent of the vote, but did not face another serious bid until 2006. In the 2004 election, he defeated Democrat Adam Smith, getting 68 percent of the vote.2006
In the 2006 election, Lewis defeated retired U.S. Army Colonel Mike WeaverMike Weaver (politician)
Mike Weaver is a politician and retired military officer from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He has served as a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives since 1996, representing the 26th District. Weaver, a member of the Democratic Party....
, a former member of the Kentucky House of Representatives. Weaver gave Lewis his first credible challenge in a decade, holding him to only 55 percent of the vote.
Committee Assignments
- Ways and Means Committee
- Subcommittee on Social Security
- Subcommittee on Trade
- Republican Policy Committee
Retirement
On January 29, 2008, Lewis announced he wouldn't run for reelection in 2008 on the same day as the filing deadline; he was hoping to ensure the GOP nomination would be won by his chief of staff, Daniel London, but State Senator Brett GuthrieBrett Guthrie
Steven Brett Guthrie is the U.S. Representative for , a Bowling Green-based district, since 2009. He is a member of the Republican Party. He previously served in the Kentucky Senate.-Early life, education, and career:...
also filed for the race. The decision shocked and angered many prominent Kentucky Republicans, Lewis said he was tired of splitting his time between Washington and Kentucky, and that serving in Congress had not been as encouraging since Democrats gained the majority in 2007.
On the Democratic side, State Senator David Boswell
David Boswell (Kentucky politician)
David E. Boswell is a former Democratic member of the Kentucky Senate, having represented the 8th District from 1990 to 2011. Earlier he was a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1978 through 1983. He was the 2008 Democratic nominee for U.S. Representative for Kentucky's 2nd...
of Daviess County
Daviess County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 91,545 people, 36,033 households, and 24,826 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 38,432 housing units at an average density of...
and the Daviess County Judge-Executive Reid Haire both filed. Guthrie emerged the winner over primary rival Daniel London and then Boswell.
Lewis deposited his congressional papers at Baptist-affiliated Campbellsville University.
In 2010, Lewis announced his support for Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson
Trey Grayson
Charles Merwin "Trey" Grayson III is the director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, a former Secretary of State of Kentucky and a candidate in the 2010 GOP primary to replace Jim Bunning, losing to Rand Paul.-Early years and career:A product of the Kenton County public school...
in the race to fill the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
seat of retiring Republican Senator Jim Bunning
Jim Bunning
James Paul David "Jim" Bunning is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher and politician.During a 17-year baseball career, he pitched from 1955 to 1971, most notably with the Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Phillies. When he retired, he had the second-highest total of career...
. Grayson lost the nomination to the eventual Senate winner, Republican Rand Paul
Rand Paul
Randal Howard "Rand" Paul is the junior United States Senator for Kentucky. He is a member of the Republican Party. A member of the Tea Party movement, he describes himself as a "constitutional conservative" and a libertarian...
.
External links
- Profile at SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
CongresspediaCongresspediaCongresspedia was a wiki that ran from April 2006 to March 2009, designed to hold information on the workings of the U.S. Congress. It was fully contained within SourceWatch, a larger wiki meant to document the people, organizations and issues shaping the public agenda. The Congresspedia portion of... - Campaign 2004 Profile of Lewis USA Today
- Stand on taxing social security income