Lawsuit claims Corbin mayor candidate not qualified to seek office

A local resident is questioning the legitimacy of a Corbin mayoral candidate, and the issue is to be settled in court in the near future.
A lawsuit, filed Monday in Whitley Circuit Court, claims Corbin Mayor hopeful Randy Smith is not a resident of the city, and therefore should not be allowed to seek election.
Darrell Saunders, a local attorney who filed the complaint on behalf of Corbin resident Ronald B. Rose, said the issue should be resolved in the near future.
“The statute indicates that it will be heard upon motion,” Saunders said. “It’s a summary proceeding, meaning we try as hard as we can to have it heard as soon as possible, especially since we are running short on time.”
Rose himself could not be reached for comment.
State law requires that a candidate for mayor reside in the city where he’s seeking election for at least one year prior to being elected to the office. Anyone serving as mayor must remain a resident throughout the term.
On election forms filed January 31 with the Whitley County Clerk’s office, Smith claimed he lives at 114 18th Street. The lawsuit contends his actual residence is 6436 South Highway 25 in Laurel County – outside the city limits.
Smith could not be reached for comment prior to this story, but did address questions regarding his residency during a Feb. 6 interview. Smith said he and his wife, Sheila, own a five-bedroom home in the Lily community of Laurel County, but that he actually resides at the two-bedroom house on 18th Street. He said he and his wife have had marital problems in the past and that both of them move between houses regularly. The couple has four children.
“Sometimes they are in Ohio, sometimes they are in Lily. It depends on when it is … There’s no law in the world that says you can’t have more than one house,” Smith said. “I’m not going to make a schedule for when I sleep where. That’s ridiculous. Sometimes I’m there seven days a week.”
Smith registered to vote using the address in Nov. 2005. He has a valid driver’s license showing he lives at 114 18th Street. He said his second oldest daughter lives with him at the home, and that his other children live with his wife.
According to a deed filed with the lawsuit, Randy and Sheila Smith purchased their home at 6435 South Highway 25 on Jan. 28, 2005. Smith said he is a real-estate developer who often moves between homes. He said his work schedule also forces him to be away from home for long periods of time. He is an area manager for three local McDonald’s restaurants.
“I make my own schedule. I don’t have to be anywhere at any given time,” Smith said. “From 6:30 in the morning until 10:30 at night, I’m usually doing something. I don’t hang around my house … I don’t spend a lot of time there because I’m serving.”
Smith said his family was looking to buy another home inside the city. Previously, he said he lived on South Kentucky Ave. in Corbin, but is not sure if he was ever registered to vote.
If a judge rules that Smith does not meet residency requirements, he will be removed from the May 17 primary election ballot. His removal would also mean the remaining two candidates, Dr. Truman Perry and Willard McBurney, would square off in November’s general election.