Bill Ferko

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Bill Ferko

Republican Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

May 17, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 1975

Graduate

University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 1980

Personal

Birthplace

Racine, Wis.

Religion

Catholic

Profession

Chief financial officer of public and private manufacturing companies, chief risk officer of a bank, lecturer at the University of Louisville, board of directors member for Sypris Solutions

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

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Bill Ferko (Republican Party) ran for election to the Kentucky State Senate to represent District 6. He lost in the Republican primary on May 17, 2022.

Ferko completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Bill Ferko was born in Racine, Wisconsin. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in 1975. He earned a graduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in 1980. His career experience includes working as a chief financial officer of public and private manufacturing companies, chief risk officer of a bank, lecturer at the University of Louisville, and a board of directors member for Sypris Solutions.

Elections

2022

See also: Kentucky State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Kentucky State Senate District 6

Lindsey Tichenor defeated Brian Easley in the general election for Kentucky State Senate District 6 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lindsey Tichenor (R)	94.5	31,111
		Brian Easley (D) (Write-in)	5.5	1,797

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 32,908
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Kentucky State Senate District 6

Lindsey Tichenor defeated Bill Ferko in the Republican primary for Kentucky State Senate District 6 on May 17, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lindsey Tichenor	54.0	6,601
		Bill Ferko	46.0	5,616

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 12,217
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2020

See also: Kentucky state legislative special elections, 2020

General election

Special general election for Kentucky State Senate District 26

Karen Berg defeated Bill Ferko in the special general election for Kentucky State Senate District 26 on June 23, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Karen Berg (D)	57.0	24,771
		Bill Ferko (R)	43.0	18,705

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 43,476
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Bill Ferko completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ferko's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

William (Bill) Ferko is an undisputed powerhouse in the field of financial management, gaining over 45 years of experience with companies located throughout the United States and abroad.

A shrewd businessman, Bill has a knack for cutting wasteful spending and improving the bottom line of each company he has managed. Bill is a member of the Board of Directors for Sypris Solutions, Inc., a publicly-traded company manufacturing defense electronics. He also serves as an Instructor of Equine Finance at the University of Louisville, where he hopes to pass along the value of fiscal responsibility to the next generation of local business leaders.

Giving back to his community is an important part of Bill’s life. He is the current Chairman of Dismas Charities in Louisville and was appointed by the Governor to serve as Commissioner for the Kentucky Horse Park – an appointment that ended in 2019. Bill also served previously as president and member of the Pastoral Council & Finance Committee for St. Bernadette Church and St. Mary's Academy.

Bill and his wife, Debbie, have lived in the Prospect area for about 23 years. Debbie is a retired nurse from the Louisville Veterans Hospital. They operate Turning Leaf, a horse farm in Brownsboro and enjoy spending as much time as they can with their dogs and their three grown children.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Ban Woke, CRT, DEI in schools. I am pro-parental involvement and support school choice. Students need to learn the basics of Reading, Writing, and Mathematics, the Economics of Capitalism, and the true hard work that built our great country.
• We must stop printing helicopter money. Thanks to inflation and poor leadership we have essentially borrowed $30 Trillion from our children. My background in the business sector will help me to find quick efficiencies within our state government. We need to trim waste, inefficiency and over-regulation.
• Stop the Biden and Beshear agenda to manage your life for you and increase taxes.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Kentucky education ranking is low. The relationship between educational attainment and income are well documented. I believe that if we improve education in Kentucky it will ultimately help to solve our poverty, crime and violence problems. We need to attract new business into Kentucky but we lack the trained labor force and taxes are too high. Our focus must be on building the base of education and lower taxes to attract and grow our economic base.

With the right problem-solving and hard work, we can overcome issues exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic and instability abroad. I am committed as ever to addressing these pressing issues, especially involving our Economy, Safety and Freedom:

✓ On the fiscal issues (which we both care deeply about), I am a fundamental conservative.

✓ My background in the business sector will help me find quick efficiencies within our state government. We need to trim the fat that is government waste and over-regulation.

✓ We must stop printing helicopter money. Thanks to inflation and poor leadership, we’ve essentially borrowed $30 Trillion from our children.

✓ Stop the Biden and Beshear agenda to manage your life for you and increase taxes.

✓ Most of the issues in our district revolve around Safety. Our crumbling roads pose a safety hazard to motorists, bikers, and pedestrians. Carjackings are increasing in our neighborhoods and petty theft is out of control. Homicide rates in Louisville are at records

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I look up to Ronald Reagan. He was a very wise man. He was a Democrat for a good part of his life but he ultimately saw the threat of Socialism and what taxes and entitlements were doing to the moral compass of our country. I only wish that more people could understand his vision and how he took us down a path to be a much stronger country.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

The US Constitution. We must live and legislate by it.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Elected Officials need to listen to their voters and understand what is important for them. Frequent communication, open communication lines, surveys, community meetings, etc are all methods where the elected officials can hear the needs of the community.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am a good listener and I can listen to different view points and then negotiate a deal or situation to find a win-win solution.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Stick to their values. Vote their conscience. We are in it to serve our community and voters. It should not be a popularity contest it should be a representation of values. I will serve and represent others so that they do not need to but their views and values will be properly represented by me.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Improve the education standards and achievement levels in Kentucky. Ultimately for Kentucky to have one of the top ten per capita income levels in the USA and one of the lowest crime rates.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The first historical event that I remember is the John Kennedy assassination in November 1963. I was 9 years old. My family always admired his sense of service and dedication to our country. Although he was a Democrat and I am a Republican, I appreciate the sacrifice that he and his family made for our country. Ask Not.....

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Bill Ferko was born and raised in a modest, Christian family in southeastern Wisconsin. As a teen, Bill spent evenings and weekends stocking shelves at his parent’s business, a small family grocery. After the family sold the store, Bill undertook a variety of community jobs including washing dishes at a local Chinese restaurant and door-to-door sales for Fuller Brush cleaning products.

Bill’s ultimate goal was to save for a college education. Thanks to his hard work and frugal disposition, Bill was able to pay his way through the University of Wisconsin Parkside. When he wasn’t studying, he was cutting his teeth in the finance sector as a local bank teller.

After earning a degree in Business Management, Bill began his career in finance with Case IH, a subsidiary of Tenneco, Inc. that manufactures farm and construction equipment. While working, Bill eventually earned his MBA from the University of Wisconsin Parkside and his CPA certificate from the University of Illinois.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Other than the Bible which has a solution for almost every problem....

The Goal by Eliyahu Goldradtt - it helps to show how bottlenecks and obstacles can be removed to make things work faster and better.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

John Gault in Atlas Shrugged

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

I have always had to work hard but I enjoy working.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

The governor needs to be able to implement the legislation so there needs to be an understanding and a pragmatic element in the relationship. Health friction can result in optimizing solutions.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Education must be improved or our poverty, crime and violence issues are going to get even worse.

What are the benefits and drawbacks of a unicameral state legislature, in your opinion?

I believe that the bicameral system of America is best. More voices are heard and and the citizens are better represented. Laws get reviewed twice and improved in conference committee.

The Unicameral system seems to favor whoever can shout the loudest.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe that someone with a fresh approach who represents the voters rather than the insider professionals who make a career of government service is optimal. The government should work for the people and we should not have the people working for the government. Thus I believe in Term limits.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

Collaboration can lead to synergies and a better understanding of needs and challenges. I believe the relationships can be helpful.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Kentucky recently completed a redistricting process and I believe that it worked well. All of the citizens need to be proportionately represented.

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

Given my background in finance and accounting , I would like to serve on the Appropriations and Revenue committee. I would like to serve on the Transportation Committee because our area is in great need of transportation infrastructure. I would like to serve on the Education committee to help solve our fundamental poor education quality and high cost issue. I would like to serve on the Judicial Committee be cause I have served as a board member and Chairman of Dismas Charities, a prison reentry company that serves over 8,000 long-term prisoners reentering society and I understand their challenges.

If you are a current legislator, what appealed to you about your current committees?

NA - I am not a current legislator

Is there a particular legislator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

The former Senator for our district Ernie Harris served us well.

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

No. I view the KY Senate role as the ultimate role where I will be able to serve and make a difference for our community.

Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

The most recent stories are stories of loved ones who have passed from illness or accidents. I keep all of them in my prayers.

Deaths due to traffic accidents is one of the issues that motivated me to run for office. We need to make our roads safe with wider shoulders and bike paths where possible.

Should the legislature oversee or grant the use of emergency powers?

Yes, There needs to be checks and balances. Emergency powers can be granted for a few days until the legislature can convene to make a determination.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

I have negotiated over 80 merger and acquisition deals during my career. I have seen what happens when negotiation fails. Every negotiation should create a win - win environment where good things come out for both sides and the deal gets done. Nevertheless there are times when core principles must be followed and in that case compromise may not be possible. Ie. We should never compromise movement toward Marxism.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2020

Bill Ferko did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

See also

2022 Elections

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Candidate

Kentucky State Senate District 6

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Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Kentucky State Senate

Leadership

Senate President:Robert Stivers

Majority Leader:Max Wise

Minority Leader:Gerald Neal

Senators

District 1

Jason Howell (R)

District 2

Danny Carroll (R)

District 3

Craig Richardson (R)

District 4

Robby Mills (R)

District 5

Stephen Meredith (R)

District 6

Lindsey Tichenor (R)

District 7

Aaron Reed (R)

District 8

Gary Boswell (R)

District 9

David Givens (R)

District 10

Matthew Deneen (R)

District 11

Steve Rawlings (R)

District 12

Amanda Bledsoe (R)

District 13

Reggie Thomas (D)

District 14

Jimmy Higdon (R)

District 15

Rick Girdler (R)

District 16

Max Wise (R)

District 17

Matt Nunn (R)

District 18

Robin Webb (R)

District 19

Cassie Chambers Armstrong (D)

District 20

Gex Williams (R)

District 21

Brandon Storm (R)

District 22

Donald Douglas (R)

District 23

Chris McDaniel (R)

District 24

Shelley Frommeyer (R)

District 25

Robert Stivers (R)

District 26

Karen Berg (D)

District 27

Steve West (R)

District 28

Greg Elkins (R)

District 29

Scott Madon (R)

District 30

Brandon Smith (R)

District 31

Phillip Wheeler (R)

District 32

Mike Wilson (R)

District 33

Gerald Neal (D)

District 34

Jared Carpenter (R)

District 35

Keturah Herron (D)

District 36

Julie Adams (R)

District 37

David Yates (D)

District 38

Mike Nemes (R)

Republican Party (32)

Democratic Party (6)