Press Release: January 30, 2006, on the Kentucky Secretary of State's Website.

With only one more day for primary candidates, including political party candidates and candidates for non-partisan races that file with the Secretary of State to run for office, the Office of the Secretary of State set a new record for candidate filings during an election season.

As of Monday, January 30, 2006, 614 people had filed candidacy papers with the Secretary's Office, and many additional candidates are expected to file on or before the deadline of 4:00 p.m., January 31.

The previous record for filings was set in 1998 when 611 candidates filed to run for office.

The record number of races on the ballot is due to the 1992 constitutional amendment creating an "off year" in election cycles. Every four years, Kentucky does not have a regularly scheduled election. To accommodate this change, some offices' terms were altered to ensure that no election fell on the "off year". This is the first time since the amendment passed that this large number of races has appeared on the ballot at the same time.