Reginald Thomas (born May 20, 1953) is an American politician from the state of Kentucky. A member of the Democratic Party, Thomas is a member of the Kentucky Senate and currently serves as the minority caucus chair.[1][2] Thomas' election in 2013 marked the first time that two African Americans served in the Kentucky Senate concurrently.[3] Thomas is an attorney and law professor; he earned an A.B. degree from Dartmouth College in 1975 and a J.D. degree from Harvard Law School in 1978.[4][5]
On July 1, 2017, Thomas announced he would challenge Representative Andy Barr in Kentucky's 6th congressional district during the 2018 midterm elections.[6] He lost the Democratic primary to Amy McGrath, who then lost the general election to Barr.
In 2021, Thomas went viral with a TikTok video receiving more than 4 million views of himself singing the song Rick and Morty by Soulja Boy with the caption "Rapping Rick and Morty to the Senate Chambers until we raise the minimum raise in Kentucky".[7]
References
- ^ "Democrat Reginald Thomas wins state Senate special election". Kentucky.com. December 10, 2013.
- ^ Latek, Tom. "State Dems re-elect McGarvey, Parrett as minority leaders". Kentuckytoday.com. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
- ^ "Republicans move closer to taking control of House". The Courier-Journal. December 10, 2013.
- ^ "Senate District 13: Reginald Thomas (D)". Kentucky Legislature. Retrieved July 24, 2014.
- ^ "Questions surround candidate's 1984 departure from University of Kentucky". Lexington Herald Leader. November 22, 2013.
- ^ Desrochers, Daniel (July 1, 2017). "Thomas announces he'll challenge Barr for House of Representatives seat in 2018". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved July 1, 2017.
- ^ Thalen, Mikael (September 1, 2021). "Kentucky Dem raps 'Rick & Morty' to try and raise the minimum wage". The Daily Dot. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
External links
- Reggie Thomas for Congress campaign site
- Senate District 13: Reginald Thomas (D) at Kentucky Legislature
- Reginald Thomas at Kentucky Senate Democrats website
- Reginald Thomas at Project Vote Smart
- Reggie Thomas at Ballotpedia