Residents urge Hopkinsville to adopt nonpartisan local elections, citing disenfranchised independent voters

Two residents who identified themselves as active voter-registration volunteers addressed Hopkinsville City Council during public comment on Oct. 21, urging the city to amend its election ordinance to adopt nonpartisan local elections and eliminate party labels on city ballots.

Alvia Littleton and Bonnie Lynch spoke separately. Littleton said she and others were confused by the city’s ward/primary/general election structure and had learned that, under current local practice, the general election is “at-large,” allowing any registered city voter to vote for ward representatives in the general election. She said Hopkinsville voters lacked transparency about that process.

Bonnie Lynch, who said she has worked registering voters, urged the council to remove party labels from local ballots so independent (unaffiliated) voters can participate. Lynch told the council there are 6,837 Hopkinsville voters registered as independents and that only 1,732 independents voted in the last general election; she argued the current practice depresses turnout and disenfranchises unaffiliated voters who cannot participate in the primary. Lynch cited neighboring cities that have adopted nonpartisan elections and said nonpartisan ballots tend to increase candidate participation and reduce national-party influence on local races.

Both speakers asked the council to consider amending the city ordinance to remove party designations from local ballots and to broaden participation by allowing unaffiliated voters to vote in local contests. They said they had a draft ordinance to share.

Council members did not act on the request during the Oct. 21 meeting; the speakers presented their concerns during the public-comment period and asked staff and council to review the ordinance language and options.