Jordan Baldridge
Kenton County
Comissioner Disrict 3
Affordability = Good Jobs & Smart Growth = Healthy, Safe Communities
Kenton County residents are feeling the affordability crunch — from groceries to health care to housing. While county government can’t magically fix everything, we can do more to help people who are struggling.
When people can’t afford to live here, they cut corners on their physical and mental health, feel less secure, and put off building families. That doesn’t just hurt individuals — it affects the entire community.
Affordability Requires Investing in Local Families
Affordability starts with good jobs and smart growth. That means investing in and protecting Kenton County families and workers.
This is Kentucky — where education pays. Whether it’s the trades, tech, or AI, investing in education and skills helps people earn better wages, build stronger communities, and live healthier, safer lives.
Good Jobs & Smart Growth
Growth can’t focus only on big business. It has to support small businesses, entrepreneurs, and the workers who already live here.
Smart growth means developing people — their skills, their education, and their ability to participate fully in the economy. That benefits everyone, from young people entering the workforce to older residents who need to stay connected to their families and communities.
Smart growth also means protecting workers — whether they’re grocers, laborers, teachers, or public employees. We need local, open, and transparent bidding processes, and we must prioritize union labor for infrastructure projects. While it’s called “Right to Work,” too often it functions as “Right to Be Fired.” Kenton County can do better.
Healthy, Safe Communities Start with Affordability
Health is one of the first things to suffer when people can’t afford to live. Joblessness and underemployment lead directly to worse health outcomes, especially when access to health care is tied to employment.
Kenton County can do more — through outreach for existing programs, targeted health funds, and community-based support — to help residents who fall through the cracks. A healthier community is a safer community.
An Affordable Kenton Requires a Modern, Transparent Government
None of this works without a government that is honest, modern, and responsive to the people it serves.
If public dollars are being spent, the public should be able to see where that money goes — clearly and easily. Right now, that’s not happening. Kenton County’s so-called “Financial Transparency Portal” leads to 404 errors and broken links, creating a real gap between the county and the people it serves.
I will work to modernize county government, restore transparency, and make information easy to find, easy to understand, and truthful.
That means fair and open bidding, supporting local workers, ensuring prevailing wages, and holding government accountable — so we can build an affordable Kenton County with good jobs, smart growth, and healthy, safe communities.
I’m starting my campaign by identifying a clear opportunity to invest in a modern, transparent county government—starting with stronger investment in our IT team.
Kenton County’s Financial Transparency Portal states that it is “designed to bring visibility, openness, and accountability to our operations.” Unfortunately, after clicking through every link multiple times, none of the Transparency Portal or budget links work. Every link—except for the user manual and a direct link to OpenGov’s resource page—results in a 404 error, meaning the page cannot be found or accessed.
In IT, issues like this can happen for many reasons:
an expired password or access key
a URL updated in one place but not another
DNS or routing issues
content that was moved, discontinued, or never fully deployed
As a software engineer, I know these things happen—and often through no one’s fault. But when something is broken, you don’t ignore it. You fix it.
I’ve submitted an incident ticket with OpenGov and will be contacting the Director of IT to ensure they’re aware, as I was unable to locate a public IT reporting system for Kenton County.
I want to be clear: I don’t see this as a failure of Kenton County’s IT staff. This reflects a long-standing lack of investment in technology that strengthens government, supports jobs, ensures systems work reliably, and delivers real transparency for residents.
This is about one thing: fixing government so Kenton County is more affordable, safe, and healthy. My passion for IT excellence—building platforms, deploying AI services, and solving real problems—drives me to identify issues so we can fix them together.
You can try the portal yourself at the link below, or watch me click through the site and submit the incident ticket to OpenGov: