STANFORD – Lincoln County’s state representative has been elected to serve on the state’s 2017 House Majority Leadership Team.
David Meade (R-Stanford) was elected to serve as Republican House Majority Caucus Chairman – a role that he said is looking forward to filling.
It’s a position that didn’t exist the last time Republicans held control of the house, making Meade the state’s first Republican majority caucus chairman and the first Lincoln County representative to serve in majority leadership.
“The primary job is leading the caucus while we’re in session which means overseeing the meetings of the caucus and voicing their concerns and their opinions to the leadership team,“ Meade said. “One of the main things is nurturing a strong sense of unity within that caucus.”
Meade was first elected to his seat representing Lincoln and Pulaski counties in 2012. He was re-elected without opposition in 2014 and this year.
“As a member of joint leadership, I also have a huge task of working with the rest of the team to decide the flow of legislation,” he said. “As caucus chairman I have to take into consideration what is best for every member of our caucus from far eastern Kentucky to far western Kentucky.”
Meade said the leadership elections can be stressful because it requires running against friends but he is excited to fill the role of caucus chairman.
“Our district (80th) will definitely benefit from me being in the majority,” Meade said. “One of our big focuses is going to be on creating jobs. When we grow the economy we are going to generate more revenue to address these problems that our state is facing.”
Meade said tort reform and comprehensive tax reform are two priorities as well
“I am very strongly pro-life and I think that is something our team will end up focusing on as well,” he said.
Meade joins David Osborne (R-Oldham County), who will serve as speaker pro-tem, and Kevin Bratcher (R-Jefferson County), who will serve as majority whip. Jeff Hoover (R-Jamestown) is the speaker elect.