By Ned Pillersdorf | Guest Opinion Following the November 3 election, former congressional candidate Ned Pillersdorf is publicly criticizing the Kentucky Democratic Party’s treatment of candidates in Eastern Kentucky. The following commentary is published with his permission. “Can’t help but noticice that the Kentucky Democratic Party is giving themselves a standing ovation for their modest wins in the midterms. Excuse us here in eastern Kentucky if we are not applauding. In fact the performance of the Kentucky Democratic Party when compared to other southern states was an abysmal failure. While the Democratic parties in states such as Mississippi, South Carolina ,Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee went all out to help all of their candidates, who either won or were competitive - the leadership of the Kentucky Democratic Party made the strategic decision to completely ignore the fifth congressional district in eastern Kentucky. The stunning historic truth is there is not a single Democratic office holder from the fifth congressional district who will be in Frankfort when the legislature convenes in January. We had one-the number is now zero. Myself and the four female legislative candidates all lost our races- and none of our races were competitive. The Democratic Party made it clear at their annual convention at the Hyatt in Lexington this summer that we were not worthy. I personally sponsored the excellent four female legislative candidates and helped fund their campaigns throughout our fifth congressional district. When we arrived at the Hyatt and learned their was a downstairs fundraising reception- we were greeted by a security guard who was told by the party officials we were not allowed in. Not surprisingly our names were never mentioned at the annual convention dinner. None of us received funding. I was personally treated as an incompetent novice- even though I was the campaign manager for my spouse’s five successful judicial campaigns. Former Supreme Court Justice Janet Stumbo accomplished something the Democratic Party doesn’t know how to do- it’s called winning elections in Appalachia. The bottom line is that there is not a single congressional district in the nation who has and will suffer more from the Republican assault on the less fortunate than our poverty stricken district. The good news is that thanks to the wonderful blue tsunami help is on the way from elsewhere thanks to the Democratic parties in other states who saw the blue wave coming and didn’t do what the Kentucky Democratic Party did -abandon many of their candidates. As far as the Democratic party is concerned - we might as well be in West Virginia.” Editor’s Note: This guest OpEd is published with the author’s permission. The views and allegations expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of Appalachia Insider. Publication does not constitute a political endorsement. #AppalachiaInsider #OpEd #EasternKentucky #KentuckyPolitics #KY05 #KentuckyElections