Timothy Shafer

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

Timothy Shafer

Independent

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 2, 2021

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Navy

Years of service

2000 - 2008

Personal

Religion

Christian

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Timothy Shafer (independent) ran in a special election to the Kentucky House of Representatives to represent District 51. He lost in the special general election on November 2, 2021.

Shafer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Timothy Shafer served in the United States Navy from 2000 to 2008. Shafer's career experience includes working as a candle company owner.

Elections

2021

See also: Kentucky state legislative special elections, 2021

General election

Special general election for Kentucky House of Representatives District 51

Michael Pollock defeated Edwin Rogers and Timothy Shafer in the special general election for Kentucky House of Representatives District 51 on November 2, 2021.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Pollock (R)	73.7	5,217
	Submit photo	Edwin Rogers (D)	24.0	1,700
		Timothy Shafer (Independent)	2.3	161

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 7,078
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Campaign themes

2021

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Timothy Shafer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Shafer'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.

I am a navy vet, former small buisness owner, husband with 6 children 1 grandchild. I am a conservative who sides with republicans but left the party so i can represent the working without an agenda.

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?

• I am a conservative who sides with republicans running as an independant so i can represent the working class not the political agenda
• Commitment, leadership, and the powerfull voice you deserve
• I represent the working class not the corporate political agenda

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Education, small buisnesses, no covid mandates, lower taxes, smaller government, and term limits

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

My father and grandfather. They can take a bad life situation and turn it into a positive and tought me to always give 100% and strive to achive your life goals and even if you dont achive them at least you can say to gave 100% trying and money doesnt bring happiness family does.

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

No.

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

Honesty, integrity, accessability, communication.

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

Commitment, leadership, dedication to the working class, communication, determination.

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

Passing legislation that the citizens want not what the political parties want.

What legacy would you like to leave?

My family, and a great legislator

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

The first gulf war, 15yrs old

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

A fishing worm farm. 1 year i was 14yrs old

What is your favorite book? Why?

All louis lamour books

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

None i like reality more

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

Lee greenwood-god bless the U.S.A

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

Fighting the system and political agendas that are crushing the working class.

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

They should work together for what is best for the citizens of their state and achive laws that will not disinfranchise any of the citizens

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

Small buisness creation and job growth due to covid

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

There are no benifits to a unicameral legislature. We have 3 equal branches of government for a reason.

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

No

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

Yes. Good working relationships help get things done faster and helps come up with better comprimise for both sides when passing legislation.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Equal and based on census

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

None i know of off hand

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

No

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

No

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?

I was recently talking with someone about unemployment and how alot of people that deserved it could not get it because the system is backed up or they were told they didnt qualify when they in fact do and this person told me they were denied but called a local senetor who then made a phone call and they got it within 3 days. I dont think this is fair that if your a well connected person that you can get an advatage over other citizens this isnt right.0

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

Yes.

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

Yes. I would like to see working accross the aisle return. Both sides have to be able to work together to get things done

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.

Note: Shafer submitted the above survey responses to Ballotpedia on September 16, 2021.

Show past responsesHide past responses

September 15 submission

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a consevative and constitutionalist and identify with republicans. I was in the navy, studied law, owned a small buisness, and was homeless for 6 months. I was raised by marines mother & father.

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?

• The working class person is to often forgotten by career politicians and well connected candidates. My goal is to represent the average working Citizen of district 51 . I will always listen to what the citizens want, be available to the citizens of district 51, and give them 100% when fighting for them. I will always do what is best for district 51 in a manner that will make you proud of me as your representative.
• The teachers and school boards of Adair & Taylor counties have created some of the best education systems in the country with exeptional elective classes for vocational trades, counseling and medical care for our children, and the general courses that prepare our children for their future. These educators worked very hard during the pandemic and should be rewarded for their dedication and sacrifice. We need to offer incentives for the locally owned buisnesses that were hit hard by the covid-19 lockdowns. I think this could be done through tax breaks, small buisness loan forgivness, and programs to incentivise more buisnesses to open up in Adair and Taylor counties.
• District 51 has a huge rural community which is to ofter overlooked for city politics and agendas. I will make sure that our rural communitys have equal resources as our cities. Some of our rural country roads need paving, water drainage, overhanging trees cleared, and general maininance.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Second Amendment, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, education, capitalism, personal responsibility, national defense, family values, no mandates, law enforcement, stricter sex crime laws, smaller government, and term limits.

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

My father. He is an extrordinary man who has raised a family with sometimes barely anything to his name and has a great positive attitude towords life, ;elieves anyone can accomplish anything in life with hard work, and he has very deep rooted patriotism.

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

Accesability, leadership, drive and determination to please your constituents, integrity, honor, a desire to better the district you represent.

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

Commitment, leadership, great understanding of law, dedication, and the ability to work with others and comprimise to achive goals.

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

Upholding the constitution of Kentucky and the United States.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Great father, husband, and person.

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

The first gulf war. 15yrs old

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

Worked on a fishing worm farm.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Louis lamour books.

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

Lee greenwood god bless the U.S.A

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

The governor and legislature should work together to achive the best results for the citizens of the state.

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

I dont see any benifits of a unicameral state legislature our constitution set up 3 branches of government for a reason and that is so not one brance can achive to much power they are meant to keep each other in check.

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

No i believe our government should be made up of average citizens.

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

Yes. If you have a good working relationship with the other legislators then you can accomplish more.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Basing redistricting on the census and keeping districts as close to equal as possible. This should be done by the legislature every 10 years.

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

No.

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

Yes.

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

Yes definatly i believe that both parties can comprimise and still achive their goals and i believe if politicians would work together more our government would not have as many problems.

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.

Note: Shafer submitted the above survey responses to Ballotpedia on September 15, 2021.

See also

2021 Elections

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Government

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Candidate

Kentucky House of Representatives District 51

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Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Kentucky House of Representatives

Leadership

Speaker of the House:David Osborne

Representatives

District 1

Steven Rudy (R)

District 2

Kimberly Holloway (R)

District 3

Randy Bridges (R)

District 4

D. Wade Williams (R)

District 5

Mary Imes (R)

District 6

Chris Freeland (R)

District 7

Suzanne Miles (R)

District 8

Walker Thomas (R)

District 9

Myron Dossett (R)

District 10

Josh Calloway (R)

District 11

J.T. Payne (R)

District 12

Jim Gooch (R)

District 13

D.J. Johnson (R)

District 14

Scott Lewis (R)

District 15

Rebecca Raymer (R)

District 16

Jason Petrie (R)

District 17

Robert Duvall (R)

District 18

Samara Heavrin (R)

District 19

Michael Meredith (R)

District 20

Kevin Jackson (R)

District 21

Amy Neighbors (R)

District 22

Shawn McPherson (R)

District 23

Steve Riley (R)

District 24

Ryan Bivens (R)

District 25

Steve Bratcher (R)

District 26

Peyton Griffee (R)

District 27

Nancy Tate (R)

District 28

Jared Bauman (R)

District 29

Chris Lewis (R)

District 30

Daniel Grossberg (D)

District 31

Susan Tyler Witten (R)

District 32

Tina Bojanowski (D)

District 33

Jason Nemes (R)

District 34

Sarah Stalker (D)

District 35

Lisa Willner (D)

District 36

John Hodgson (R)

District 37

Emily Callaway (R)

District 38

Rachel Roarx (D)

District 39

Matt Lockett (R)

District 40

Nima Kulkarni (D)

District 41

Mary Marzian (D)

District 42

Joshua Watkins (D)

District 43

Pamela Stevenson (D)

District 44

Beverly Chester-Burton (D)

District 45

Adam Moore (D)

District 46

Alan Gentry (D)

District 47

Felicia Rabourn (R)

District 48

Ken Fleming (R)

District 49

Thomas Huff (R)

District 50

Candy Massaroni (R)

District 51

Michael Pollock (R)

District 52

Ken Upchurch (R)

District 53

James Tipton (R)

District 54

Daniel Elliott (R)

District 55

Kim King (R)

District 56

Daniel Fister (R)

District 57

Erika Hancock (D)

District 58

Jennifer Decker (R)

District 59

David Osborne (R)

District 60

Marianne Proctor (R)

District 61

Savannah Maddox (R)

District 62

Tony Hampton (R)

District 63

Kimberly Banta (R)

District 64

Kimberly Moser (R)

District 65

Stephanie Dietz (R)

District 66

T.J. Roberts (R)

District 67

Matthew Lehman (D)

District 68

Mike Clines (R)

District 69

Steven Doan (R)

District 70

William Lawrence (R)

District 71

Josh Bray (R)

District 72

Matthew Koch (R)

District 73

Ryan Dotson (R)

District 74

David Hale (R)

District 75

Lindsey Burke (D)

District 76

Anne Donworth (D)

District 77

George Brown (D)

District 78

Mark Hart (R)

District 79

Chad Aull (D)

District 80

David Meade (R)

District 81

Deanna Frazier Gordon (R)

District 82

Nick Wilson (R)

District 83

Joshua Branscum (R)

District 84

Chris Fugate (R)

District 85

Shane Baker (R)

District 86

Tom Smith (R)

District 87

Adam Bowling (R)

District 88

Vanessa Grossl (R)

District 89

Timmy Truett (R)

District 90

Derek Lewis (R)

District 91

Billy Wesley (R)

District 92

John Blanton (R)

District 93

Adrielle Camuel (D)

District 94

Mitchum Whitaker (R)

District 95

Ashley Laferty (D)

District 96

Patrick Flannery (R)

District 97

Bobby McCool (R)

District 98

Aaron Thompson (R)

District 99

Richard White (R)

District 100

Scott Sharp (R)

Republican Party (80)

Democratic Party (20)