Beech Tree News Network

At its November 28, 2012 meeting, the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance unanimously re-elected Craig C. Dilger to serve as its Chairman, marking an unprecedented sixth consecutive term for the Louisville attorney.
Registry member David R. Martin was re-elected as Vice-Chairman.  Martin was elected to serve five (5) terms as Butler County Judge Executive, and then retired to accept the position of Executive Director of the Kentucky County Judge Executives Association, serving from 2000 to 2003 in that capacity.
Mr. Martin served on several boards during his tenure as Butler County Judge Executive, and continues to serve on the Barren River Area Development Board and is a member of the Kentucky Public Health Association.  The Leslie Knott Letcher Perry Community Action Council currently employs him in the Transportation Division for Community Relations.  Mr. Martin was first appointed to the Registry by Kentucky Auditor of Public Accounts Crit Luallen in December 2005, and re-appointed to the Registry by Luallen in August of 2009.
Dilger's service as Chairman marks the longest continuous period of service as Chairman in the Registry’s history.
Dilger, a republican, was first appointed to the Registry by former Governor Fletcher from names submitted by organizations demonstrating a nonpartisan interest in fair elections and informed voting.  He was re-appointed to the Registry by Governor Beshear on October 29, 2008 and again on November 21, 2012.  He previously served two consecutive terms as Vice-Chair of the Registry.
Following his re-election, Dilger said, “The role of the Registry in Kentucky’s election process is very important – both for the transparency it requires of candidates for office, and committees which support those candidates, as well as for the campaign finance data the agency offers on its searchable database.  I am very excited to serve at the helm of an organization so vital to our democracy.” 
“Being offered the opportunity to serve successive terms as Chairman will allow me to continue to build on many disclosure projects and upgrades that will improve on our agency’s service to the public, as well as to candidates and committees,” said Dilger.
Dilger is a Louisville native, and a graduate of Bellarmine University and the Salmon P. Chase College of Law.  He is a member of the Labor and Employment and Business Litigation Practice Groups at Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC.  He is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States District Courts in the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.  Prior to joining Stoll Keenon Ogden in 2001, Dilger served as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in Jefferson County.  During his tenure as a prosecutor, Dilger served as the Assistant Division Chief for the General Trial Unit, Assistant Division Chief for the Unified Special Prosecutions Unit and Division Chief for the White Collar Crime Unit.
Dilger is a member of the American, Kentucky and Louisville Bar Associations, and a member of the American Inn of Court, Brandeis Chapter.  He was recognized in March 2006 by Louisville Magazine’s Best Lawyers Under Age 40 – “Pick of the Judges.”  His numerous other honors and awards include being named a Business First 40 Under 40 Honoree of 2003, and receiving the Jefferson County Police Service to Law Enforcement Award in 2001, the Louisville Division of Police Special Service and Dedication Award in 2001, and the Louisville Division of Fire Special Recognition Award in 1999.
As the Registry’s Chairman, he has been a featured panelist and participant at annual conferences of the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws (COGEL).

The Registry is charged with administering Kentucky’s campaign finance laws, including those relating to all candidates who ran for election in 2012.  Kentucky law requires the disclosure by a candidate of contributions to and expenditures by the campaign.