Your monthly support provides voters the knowledge they need to make confident decisions at the polls. Donate today.
Sasha Love Higgins
Sasha Love Higgins is a former member of the Lexington City Council in Kentucky, representing District 2 from December 2016 to April 2017. She was elected to the council on November 8, 2016, and took office in December 2016. Higgins resigned on April 27, 2017, after being indicted on felony theft charges.[1]
Biography
Higgins is from Montego Bay, Jamaica. She has worked in the hospitality industry for over a decade, including as the general hotel manager for the Hampton by Hilton Keeneland Airport South. Other experience includes serving as the public relations director for House of God International and as a board member of the Lexington Rotary Club, Opportunity Workforce Learning, Boy Scouts of Central Kentucky, Kentucky Hospitality and Lodging Association, Community Inspired Solutions, and All God’s Children.[2]
Elections
2016
The city of Lexington, Kentucky, held elections for city council on November 8, 2016. Since no more than two candidates filed for any given district, there were no primary races. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was January 26, 2016. Sasha Love Higgins defeated incumbent Shevawn Akers in the Lexington City Council District 2 general election.[3]
| Lexington City Council District 2, General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Sasha Love Higgins |
55.09% | 4,802 |
| Shevawn Akers Incumbent | 44.91% | 3,914 |
| Total Votes | 8,716 | |
| Source: Fayette County Clerk, "Election Results: General 2016," accessed November 9, 2016 | ||
Noteworthy events
Theft indictment (2017)
In February 2017, Higgins was charged with three felonies: second-degree forgery, theft by deception, and identity theft. Higgins was the general manager of a hotel, and the charges alleged that she had diverted funds for her own use from seven payroll checks in the name of a former employee. The total amount of the checks was $5,709.88 ($4,226.33 after tax).[4]
On April 26, 2017, a grand jury indicted Higgins of the three initial charges, as well as two additional theft by deception charges. Higgins' attorney, Fred Peters, said that Higgins would plead not guilty, and that the money in question had been used to pay contract housekeeping and other employees. Higgins resigned from the council on April 27 and released a statement that said she was "involved in a situation that requires a great deal of my attention. As a result of the distraction that will grow ever greater over the next several weeks, I will be tendering my resignation from the council."[1] Higgins pleaded not guilty to all charges on May 5, 2017.[5]
Campaign issues
2016
Higgins participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of municipal government candidates. The following sections display her responses to the survey questions. When asked what her top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | Lexington needs better representation, from a fresh perspective, including greater workforce accessibility and transparency. I want to work with all members of our great community to build a future that’s stronger and brighter than ever before, providing our children with the opportunities they deserve. My Four-Point Plan, as outlined on our campaign website: SashaLoveHiggins.com, is a beginning in our goal of bringing Lexington closer together, as we grow together. We have one of the best educated workforces in the country, and we must continue to strive to make sure that business and economic leaders searching for locations and offices sites understand that we are committed to their success. We want to build a 21 st century Lexington that we all can be proud of, and where we all prosper.[6][7] | ” |
When asked what she would most like to change about the city, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | We are fortunate here in Lexington to have so many great things to count on as natural resources, but like many communities there are challenges as well. For our continued growth to be sustained, many industry leaders point to building a 21 st century work force as a primary objective. As a member of management in the hospitality industry, I see first-hand the need for a qualified workforce in the field of service, and finding and retaining quality employees can be a challenge. Further, in manufacturing, construction, and other more technical fields, that gap between positions needed to be filled and qualified workers is growing at an alarming rate. We must address our workforce development needs moving forward in order to insure a strong local economy, from which we derive the support for our vibrant and diverse city that we all know and love. I will work hard from day one to move Lexington’s priorities towards building and maintaining our key component work force.[6][7] | ” |
When asked what she is most proud of about the city, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | I believe I can speak for all of us and say that I’m proud and grateful for the work our men and women in uniform do for us. They risk their lives daily to provide us with a safe city in which to live, thrive and raise our children. However. we’ve got to do our part as well. What creates a safe city? Providing opportunities for people to have jobs through economic development and education and providing resources for after school programs and life skills training for the youth to utilize their time and their energies wisely. There is more work that we can do collectively to help make an impact and create the change we want to see. The first step is electing an elected official who has been working hard on these major issues.[6][7] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the city, with 1 being the most important and 12 being the least important. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important:
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Unemployment | |
| K-12 education | |
| Crime reduction/prevention | |
| Housing | |
| Civil rights | |
| Government transparency | |
| Transportation | |
| Homelessness | |
| City services (trash, utilities, etc.) | |
| Public pensions/retirement funds | |
| Environment | |
| Recreational opportunities | |
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer four questions from Ballotpedia regarding issues facing cities across America. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column:
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| Important | |
| Local | |
| Increased economic opportunities | |
| Focusing on small business development. Aside from the moral compass of our leaders, the state of economic development in our community is one of the most consequential factors in our lives. It influences every aspect of our community, from our jobs to our families. It is important to understand that we have a unique opportunity here as local government impacts us quickly and directly. The people of Lexington are hard-working. On a drive through our great city, you’ll see construction and growth – new roads and new buildings. The people of Lexington are also creative and innovative. One great example of this is what’s been created from a once abandoned distillery district which is now home to many unique and thriving businesses. We have an innovative and hard-working community and it is my full intention to create a business environment where new businesses are setting up shop left and right and where existing businesses are experiencing unprecedented growth. When the business community is thriving everyone wins. The unemployment rates drop, youth crime decreases, the city brings in more revenue without raising taxes, businesses compete with one another not only by making a better product or service but bringing down the prices for the consumer. This is the Lexington I envision where we can have sustainable and robust economic development. We need to attract more companies to Lexington while making sure that the ones already here don’t look elsewhere. Economic development is both our biggest challenge and biggest opportunity and I believe our collective innovative minds can prompt incredible growth. |
Higgins wrote the following on her campaign website:
| “ |
|
” |
| —Sasha Love Higgins[8] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Sasha Love Higgins Lexington. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Lexington, Kentucky
- Municipal elections in Lexington, Kentucky (2016)
- United States municipal elections, 2016
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lexington Herald Leader, "Lexington councilwoman Higgins resigns one day after felony indictment," April 27, 2017
- ↑ Sasha Love Higgins campaign website, "Meet Sasha," accessed April 13, 2016
- ↑ Fayette County Clerk, "2016 General Election Sample Ballot ," January 27, 2016
- ↑ Lexington Herald Leader, "Caught on tape: Lexington councilwoman accused of stealing money from checks issued in ex-employee’s name," February 9, 2017
- ↑ The Daily Progress, "Former Lexington councilwoman pleads not guilty to 5 charges," May 8, 2017
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Ballotpedia's municipal government candidate survey, 2016, "Sasha Higgins's Responses," August 1, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Sasha Love Higgins campaign website, "The Issues," accessed April 13, 2016
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Shevawn Akers |
Lexington City Council District 2 2016-2017 |
Succeeded by Joe Smith |
 |
State of Kentucky Frankfort (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
