The two newest members of the Kentucky State Board of Elections (SBE) are no strangers to public service. Sue Carole Perry of Shelby County and Julie Griggs of McCracken County are both former county clerks. The two were sworn in by Circuit Judge Katie Gabhart this week to serve a four-year term with the SBE.
“I always enjoyed the elections. It is a lot of responsibility,” Griggs said. “Being on a different side of the elections, I'm seeing things from this aspect that I didn't see as a county clerk. And it just keeps me in the loop. I made so many county clerk friends, and [being involved] keeps me in touch with them. Hopefully, I can make a difference.”
The SBE is composed of eight members – two of which must be former county clerks – appointed by the Governor based on recommendations from the Democrat and Republican parties of Kentucky and the Kentucky County Clerks Association. The Secretary of State serves as chair of the board.
Both Griggs and Perry retired from office in 2022. They replace former Leslie County Clerk James Lewis and former Ballard County Clerk Lynn Lane, whose terms expired.
Perry, who is also a former KACo president and was a longtime KACo board member, said her and Griggs’ experience with elections in recent years will be useful to the SBE.
“Unless you have actually been through an election, I don't know how you can understand what goes on,” Perry said. “When I was county clerk, when I would have people ask about election fraud, I would tell them, why don't you come and be a precinct officer? Until you work through an election, you don't know all of the different steps that we go through to make sure that it is a good election.”
Their new SBE appointments mean that Griggs and Perry will still have to wake up early on Nov. 7. On Election Day, the State Board of Elections convenes a meeting beginning at 6 a.m. when the polls open until all polls close at 7 p.m. CDT.
“Instead of just being responsible for just my county, now it's 120 counties,” Griggs said. “That's a little different now, but I am looking forward to it.”
