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photo of Charlie Cook, Wendell Ford Speaker

Students, faculty and everyone seeking to expand their knowledge on the upcoming elections should have a special interest in the University of Kentucky’s 2020 upcoming Wendell H. Ford Public Policy Lecture. Scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 13 — exactly three weeks before the Nov. 3 elections — this lecture will feature one of the country’s most known and respected political analysts, Charlie Cook, publisher and editor of The Cook Political Report along with a panel of prominent national and Kentucky journalists.

The lecture is hosted by UK’s Martin School of Public Policy and Administration and co-sponsored by the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship and Commerce Lexington. For the first time, the Ford Lecture will be a virtual event presented as a webinar rather than in front of a live audience due to COVID-19 guidelines. This is the seventh renewal of the Ford Lecture, named for the late former Kentucky governor and U.S. senator.

Cook is expected to share his thoughts and insights about not only the presidential election but the many key House and Senate races in Kentucky and elsewhere. The outcome of these races will determine if Democrats retain control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Republicans of the U.S. Senate when the next Congress convenes in January 2021.

“We are delighted to have Charlie Cook deliver this year’s Ford Lecture,” said Ron Zimmer, director of UK’s Martin School of Public Policy. “We are seeing unprecedented interest in the upcoming elections. No one is more knowledgeable about the country’s political landscape or the public policy implications of the upcoming elections than Charlie. His presentation could not be timelier, and there will be national interest in what he has to say."

Cook is editor and publisher of The Cook Political Report​, founded in 1984. The publication is universally recognized as a nonpartisan source of accurate, fact-based political analysis and is regularly quoted by national print and television media. The publication has a strategic partnership with the National Journal Group and since 2004 has been located in the historic Watergate complex.

The panel discussion following Cook’s remarks will include Susan Page, Washington Bureau Chief for USA Today, who recently was selected to moderate the Oct. 7 Vice Presidential Debate in Salt Lake City, Utah; Al Cross, UK journalism professor and former Courier-Journal political writer; and Renee Shaw, public affairs producer and host for the Kentucky Educational Television network, who will serve as moderator.

2020 University of Kentucky Wendell H. Ford Public Policy Lecture

Tuesday, October 13 from 4-5:30 PM;

REGISTER FOR THE FORD LECTURE

Or visit this URL to register: https://bit.ly/fordlecture 

Advance registration is required. Expect an email from us October 10th with login information for Zoom. 

Co-sponsored by 

The Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship & CommerceLex

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