Savannah Maddox
Maddox in 2023
Member of the Kentucky House of Representatives
from the 61st district
Assumed office
January 1, 2019
Preceded byBrian Linder
Personal details
Born (1987-11-02) November 2, 1987
Kentucky, U.S.[1]
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Eldon Maddox
​
(m. 2008)​
Children2
EducationNorthern Kentucky University (BA)
Websitemaddoxforky.com

Savannah Lee Maddox (born November 2, 1987) is an American politician.[2] She is a Republican and represents District 61 containing Grant County, Gallatin County, and parts of Kenton and Boone Counties in the Kentucky House of Representatives.[3] Maddox is viewed as one of the General Assembly’s furthest-right members.[4][5][6]

Early life and career

Maddox received a Bachelor of Arts in History & International Relations from Northern Kentucky University.[2][1] After an internship with U.S. Representative Geoff Davis, she worked for the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Services.[7][2] In 2016, Maddox worked on U.S. Senator Rand Paul's reelection campaign.[2]

Kentucky House of Representatives

Maddox was first elected to the 2019 Kentucky House of Representatives in the 2018 election, when she defeated Grant County Judge-Executive Darrell Link by 5,000 votes (36%) in the general election.[2]

Maddox supported the passage of Senate Bill 150, which legalized constitutional concealed carry for legal gun owners in Kentucky.[8][9] The bill was endorsed by the National Rifle Association, while it was opposed by the Kentucky Fraternal Order of Police, Louisville Metro Police Department, and by the Kentucky Sheriff's Association.[10][11][12][8] It was signed into law in October 2019, and Maddox, along with Governor Matt Bevin, was awarded the .50 Caliber Freedom Award from the National Association for Gun Rights for her work in passing the legislation.[8]

Maddox introduced House Bill 321 in January 2020, which died in committee. It would have made it a felony for a doctor to perform a surgery or prescribe a medication to a minor intending to alter the child's gender.[13][14]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Maddox was an opponent of Governor Andy Beshear's emergency orders, calling them acts of "tyranny."[15] She proposed a measure to restrict the governor’s ability to enact a state of emergency, but it failed to advance.[16][17] Beshear said his actions saved lives, and that they reflected guidance from the White House Coronavirus Task Force.[18]

Maddox’s connection to armed militia groups who organized certain protests generated controversy, as did her posting of photos of herself with white supremacists.[19][20] Kentucky State House Democrats called on Republican leaders to formally censure Maddox after protestors from a local far-right anti-government militia Three Percenters Chapter that she had taken pictures with hung governor Beshear in effigy outside the state capitol in 2020.[21] She had made comments about Beshear after a protest, that she did not personally attend, which the Democrats said encouraged the protestors to escalate their tactics.[21][22] House Democrats also criticized Maddox for tweets she made in 2014 and 2015 in which she criticized Jews, Muslims, and then-President Barack Obama.[23]

Maddox proposed House Bill 28 in January 2022, which was defeated in the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare chaired by State Senator Ralph Alvarado.[24][25] As she proposed it, it would have banned the state government, local governments, state colleges, and private employers from forcing employees or applicants to disclose whether or not they have received any COVID-19 vaccine shots.[26] The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce opposed HB 28.[27][28]  An amended version of the bill, which excluded private employers, cleared the House Committee in March 2022, and passed in the House.[29]

2023 gubernatorial campaign

On June 6, 2022, Maddox announced that she would run in the 2023 Kentucky gubernatorial election.[30] In her announcement video, she criticized Beshear's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, and fellow Republicans for not challenging the governor's emergency orders.[31]

In the run-up to the primary, which she ultimately did not compete in, she ran against a number of Kentucky Republicans, including former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft, state Attorney General Daniel Cameron, state Auditor Mike Harmon, and state Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles.[32] As of November 2022, she was reported to have raised $210,796 for her campaign.[33] Maddox withdrew from the race on December 20, 2022.[34]

Personal life

Maddox married Eldon Maddox in 2008, and they have two children.[2][35] She attends an evangelical Christian church in Williamstown, Kentucky.[2][36]

References

  1. 1 2 "About Savannah Maddox". Savannah for Governor. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Brammer, Jack (May 22, 2020). "'Rising star' or 'dangerous'? Meet the chief critic of Kentucky's COVID-19 response". Lexington Herald-Leader. McClatchy. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Representative Savannah Maddox". Legislative Research Commission. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  4. ↑ Brown, Jennifer P. (June 7, 2022). "State Rep. Savannah Maddox joins Republican field for governor in 2023". HopTown Chronicle.
  5. ↑ Bruce Schreiner (June 6, 2022). "Kentucky Rep. Savannah Maddox Launching Bid for Governor," US News & World Report.
  6. ↑ "Rep. Savannah Maddox launches bid for Kentucky governor". spectrumnews1.com. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Meet the Candidates". GrantKY.com. May 5, 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 "Bevin, Maddox Receive Award for Work on Gun Bill". Spectrum News. October 30, 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Gov. Matt Bevin receives award from National Association for Gun Rights". WYMT-TV. October 30, 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Gov. Bevin to sign permitless conceal carry bill after House passes measure". WKYT-TV. March 1, 2019.
  11. ↑ "Kentucky lawmakers approve NRA-backed concealed carry bill". WDRB. March 1, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Permitless concealed carry bill passes house". WTVQ. March 2, 2019.
  13. ↑ Fitzsimons, Tim (November 1, 2019). "GOP lawmakers in three states want to ban trans health care for minors". NBC News. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  14. ↑ Smith-Randolph, Walter (January 29, 2020). "Ky. House Bill would make altering gender of minors with medication, surgery a felony". WKRC-TV. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  15. ↑ Sonka, Joe (May 26, 2022). "Northern Kentucky GOP lawmaker Savannah Maddox expected to launch run for governor in June". The Courier-Journal. Gannett. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  16. ↑ "House Bill 322". legislature.ky.gov.
  17. ↑ Recker, Scott (February 25, 2022). "Accused Of Extortion, Louisville's Top Prosecutor Drops Charges – But Keeps Cash". LEO Weekly.
  18. ↑ Bruce Schreiner (June 6, 2022). "Rep. Savannah Maddox launches bid for Kentucky governor". Richmond Register.
  19. ↑ "New Petition Calls for Maddox to Resign". Spectrum News. May 28, 2020.
  20. ↑ Joe Ragusa (June 10, 2022). "Savannah Maddox discusses bid for governor". Spectrum News.
  21. 1 2 "Rep. Savannah Maddox launches bid for Kentucky governor". WPSD Local 6. June 6, 2022.
  22. ↑ "Kentucky House Democrats call for censure of Rep. Savannah Maddox following effigy". Courier-Journal. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  23. ↑ "Rep. Maddox responds to call for censure from Kentucky House Democrats". WLEX-TV. May 28, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  24. ↑ "Kentucky Rep. Savannah Maddox launching bid for governor". Fox 56 News. June 6, 2022.
  25. ↑ Karthikeyan, Divya (June 6, 2022). "Ky. Rep. Savannah Maddox joins crowded Republican race for governor". 89.3 WFPL News Louisville.
  26. ↑ Sonka, Joe (March 8, 2022). "Governments, colleges may be barred from asking workers, students about COVID shot status". The Courier-Journal. Gannett. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  27. ↑ Ryan Van Velzer (April 18, 2022). "Bills that didn't survive Kentucky's legislative session (but could come back next year)". WVXU.
  28. ↑ Joe Sonka (June 6, 2022). "Northern Kentucky GOP lawmaker Savannah Maddox expected to launch run for governor in June". Yahoo.
  29. ↑ "Kentucky vaccination-related bill advanced by House panel". WHAS-TV. March 8, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  30. ↑ "State Rep. Savannah Maddox joining Kentucky governor's race". WKYT-TV. June 6, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  31. ↑ Horn, Austin (June 6, 2022). "Running to the right, Rep. Savannah Maddox kicks off GOP bid for governor". Lexington Herald-Leader. McClatchy. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  32. ↑ Luke Pierce (November 11, 2022). "Filing for 2023 elections underway across Kentucky". WCLU Radio.
  33. ↑ "Reports Overview: Savannah Maddox". KREF.
  34. ↑ Hatter, Evan (December 20, 2022). "State Rep. Savannah Maddox drops out of race for Kentucky Governor". WYMT-TV. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  35. ↑ Dan Adkins (October 30, 2018). "Online reports show software glitches in campaign-finance reports". News-Graphic.
  36. ↑ "Hart County Republican Party; Maddox and Deters campaigns clash during meeting". Jobe for Kentucky. August 17, 2022.
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