Request By:
Honorable Nelson Robert Allen
State Senator, 18th District
113 Gisling Road
Russell, Kentucky 41169
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in answer to your letter of March 31 in which you request an opinion concerning the following:
"I am currently the elected State Senator of the 18th District which comprises of Lewis, Mason, Carter and Greenup Counties. During the summer months I am contemplating on moving from the Kenwood precinct, (Greenup County) where I have resided for 12 years to the Bellefonte precinct (Greenup County). The Kenwood precinct is served by the Russell Postal Services and the Bellefonte Precinct is served by the Ashland Postal Services whose center is located in Boyd County.
"If I move from one precint to another in the same county although the postal services are not the same, will this jeopardize my office of state senator?"
Our response to the above question would be in the negative. Section 32 of the Kentucky Constitution requires a state representative or senator to reside within his district in order to be qualified to hold office. In addition, § 234 of the Constitution requires all civil officers of the state and all district, county, city or town officers to reside within their respective district, county, city or town. See also
Grantz v. Grauman, Ky., 302 S.W.2d 364 (1957); and
McConnell v. Marshall, Ky., 467 S.W.2d 318 (1971).
Thus, the only legal requirement, in so far as residency is concerned, is that you must continue to reside within your senatorial district comprised of Lewis, Mason, Carter and Greenup Counties. The fact that you may move your legal residence from one precinct to the other within Greenup County, or for that matter to a precinct in any one of the other counties comprising the 18th District, would in no way affect your right to continue to serve as Senator from said District.
For your information we are also enclosing a copy of OAG 75-456 pertaining to this question, which also points out that you are not even required to be a registered voter in order to hold the referred to office.