Scott Ritcher is your District 35 candidate for the Kentucky State Senate in 2008.

Born in the Highlands in 1969, he comes from a family of native Louisvillians. His parents, Mary and Allan, were born here, as were his older brother, Mark, and younger sister, Greta.

Younger than most of his class, he graduated from Trinity High School in 1987 at age 17. By then, his interest in music had already led him to start a band and independent record label with some of his friends. They released a cassette tape of their band and named their label Slamdek, an acronym of their combined initials.

As his friends moved away to college, Scott decided to stay in Louisville. He worked with musicians and artists to build the Slamdek Record Company into what was, at the time, the city's most successful and prolific record label. Over the next decade, Scott assisted many notable independent rock bands, including Rodan, Endpoint, Jawbox, Crain, and Kinghorse, with some of their earliest recordings. He also led two of his own groups, Sunspring and Metroschifter, both of which released records on his label.

Civic involvement

In 1990, Scott visited one of Mayor Jerry Abramson's Mayor's Night In events to discuss the needs of the local youth and music communities with the mayor. The mayor's team soon tapped Scott to work in publicizing the city's Youth Outreach program. He began meeting regularly with city officials to brainstorm ideas for further engaging the city's creative youth.

The mayor wrote in a letter to Scott, "Your image as an involved, enthusiastic youth will provide an example for young people all over the City of Louisville. It is exciting to see spirited young citizens like you wanting to take a part in the action of our city."

These meetings began a dialogue between city government and musicians (both on Scott's label and otherwise) that eventually resulted in city-sponsored shows and laid the groundwork for the Louisville Music Industry Alliance. LMIA began as a trade group and division of the Louisville-Jefferson County Office for Economic Development, and Scott was one of its earliest members.

During his work with city government, Scott was caught off guard one afternoon when he saw Ross Perot being interviewed on the Donahue television show. This interview sparked something and Scott became increasingly interested in the idea of ordinary, passionate people making a difference in the political process.

After deciding to close down the Slamdek Record Company in 1994, Scott contributed to the rise of several other labels with Louisville connections and continued to help document and distribute the city's music. He wrote a book recounting the history of the label and its bands that was released on May 25, 1996, a day Mayor Abramson declared Scott Ritcher Day in Louisville.

Campaign for Louisville Mayor

In 1998, eight years after seeing Ross Perot on television for the first time, Scott Ritcher decided to get involved in politics. He sought and received the endorsement of Perot's political movement and became the Reform Party's nominee in the campaign for Louisville mayor. Despite raising and spending only $1000, he didn't finish last and endeared himself to voters and the media. At age 28, this campaign got his political feet wet and garnered national attention from CNN and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Shortly after the election, mayor-elect David Armstrong commended Scott, whom he had faced in debates, and offered him an opportunity in his new administration. Ritcher already had plans to travel the US and Europe with his band and had to regretfully decline the offer because he couldn't give it the attention it deserved.

Writer, graphic designer, publisher

Now, ten years later, 38-year-old Scott Ritcher is a writer and graphic designer. He has been a staff member of The Courier-Journal and a contributor to Louisville Magazine, Velocity Weekly, LEO, and public radio's This American Life. He operates several web sites including the Louisville history timeline at www.Louisville.cc and a news site that has enjoyed press coverage from USA Today, The Guardian, and MTV.

Not least, Scott is the publisher of K Composite Magazine, a publication that features interviews with ordinary people. K Composite has been critcally acclaimed by NPR, Rolling Stone, and Harper's.

By way of his music, publishing, and political efforts, Scott has appeared on the cover of Velocity Weekly, The Courier-Journal's Scene and Features sections, and The Chicago Tribune's Style section. He has been a returning guest on Terry Meiners' radio program and has been interviewed on television stations WHAS, WLKY, and WAVE. He has also been the subject of feature stories in LEO Weekly and Punk Planet.

Time to stand up

In 2007, spurred by what he saw as an inability – or unwillingness – of state government to meet the needs of Kentuckians, Scott Ritcher decided to run to represent his district in the state senate.

He finds it reprehensible that there are people in Kentucky still living with many of the same problems as when he was a child. The problems that bother him the most are that some Kentuckians are without sufficient food, shelter, or medical care. He is disgusted by the influence of big money in politics and the stranglehold that lobbyists have on our government.

Scott shares the frustration millions of others have with our complex tax system and the increasingly blurred lines between church and state. He thinks you should be able to vote at the nearest poll on election day and not have to travel to your home precinct. Scott Ritcher believes that there are dozens of issues that could be made simpler and fairer, and thereby help more people achieve their goals.

For more information click on the Goals & Issues tab above. Please consider contributing to the campaign or helping out in any way you can.

This is the official campaign website for Kentucky State Senate candidate Scott Ritcher.
Accessible from BallotRevolution.org, ScottRitcher.com, ScottRitcher.org. Paid for by Ritcher 2008.