Frankort State Journal. May 4, 2024.
Editorial: Ky. election legislation earns Adams Profile in Courage Award
What does Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams have in common with former Presidents Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush and Barack Obama? They have all been named recipients of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation’s Profile in Courage Award.
It was announced Monday that Adams was the 2024 winner of the award, which recognizes public servants who have risked their careers by putting the public interest ahead of their own political standing.
Adams, a Republican, was honored for his defense of free and fair elections as well as his work “for expanding voting rights and standing up for free and fair elections despite party opposition and death threats from election deniers.”
In April 2021, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear signed the commonwealth’s most significant election law update in more than a century — thanks to collaboration between Adams, the governor and the bill’s GOP sponsors in the General Assembly.
The legislation added three days of early in-person voting — one of which is a Saturday — prior to election day and enabled counties to institute voting centers that offer any registered voter an opportunity to cast a ballot regardless of their precinct. Additionally, the law allows for widespread mail-in absentee balloting via an online portal where residents can request a mail-in ballot.
“President Kennedy’s admonition to put country before self still resonates today, and rings true now more than ever,” Adams stated. “I am honored to accept this award on behalf of election officials and poll workers across America who, inspired by his call, sacrifice to keep the American experiment in self-government alive.”
The award will be given to Adams, who is more than deserving of the honor, on June 9 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston.
“As our nation heads to the polls this November to choose the next president of the United States, courageous Secretaries of State like Michael Adams are on the front lines protecting access to the ballot and ensuring that our nation remains a beacon of democracy,” added Caroline Kennedy, honorary president of the foundation, who along with her son, Jack Schlossberg, will present the award.
We are proud of both Adams and Beshear who have proven that acting for the greater good of Kentuckians is more important that political party affiliation.
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