Donna Haynes, a longtime Daviess County resident, has announced that she will run for the Kentucky House of Representatives in District 14.
Haynes, 76, moved to Daviess County more than 45 years ago and said her decision to enter the race was shaped by her personal experiences.
“I’ve always believed in public service, even when running for office wasn’t possible,” Haynes said. “When the opportunity arose, and the need was clear, I knew it was time to step up. Our community deserves representation that understands what working families are facing and is willing to fight for them.”
Haynes said her perspective on working-family issues was formed in part by her time as a single mother during the economic downturns of the early 1980s, when layoffs were common and multiple jobs were often needed to make ends meet.
“I look at the cost of child care, housing, and groceries today, and I know firsthand how impossible that math is for too many families,” she said. “If costs then had been what they are now, I couldn’t have made it. That reality should matter to lawmakers.”
Haynes has served in leadership and advisory roles with labor and community organizations, including the Kentucky AFL-CIO Executive Board, Owensboro Central Labor Council, Kentucky Alliance of Retired Americans, Kentucky Safety and Health Network, Alma Randolph Charitable Foundation, and the Roosevelt House.
She said protecting labor rights, raising wages, and fully funding public education will be the central priorities of her campaign.
“Our public schools need more support, not fewer resources,” Haynes said. “Diverting public dollars away from public education weakens our communities and shortchanges our children.”
Haynes also pointed to staffing shortages and high caseloads in child protective services as an area needing urgent attention.
“The level of violence and neglect facing children in our communities is unacceptable,” she said. “We cannot continue to underfund the very systems designed to protect our most vulnerable citizens.”
Haynes and her husband have three living children, six grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
