3 Jefferson Co. offices to see new leaders for first time in decades

After decades of familiar leadership in the Jefferson County sheriff's, clerk's and county attorney's offices, voters will elect a new generation of leaders in 2026.

The county-level constitutional offices have long been held by the same faces: John Aubrey, a Democrat who became Jefferson County sheriff in 1999 and held the office until his death in September 2025; Bobbie Holsclaw, a Republican who took over as Jefferson County clerk in 1999 and held the office until her death in September 2025; and Mike O’Connell, who took office as the Jefferson County attorney in 2008 and is retiring at the end of his term.

"It's a major renaissance in leadership in those three offices," said Danny Briscoe, a longtime Democratic political consultant from Louisville.

All three performed well in their time leading the offices, Briscoe said, as evidenced by their repeated reelections. Holsclaw's streak of successful elections as a Republican was particularly notable, O’Connell said in an interview.






https://www.courier-journal.com/story/News/politics/elections/2026/03/30/2026-elections-jefferson-county-clerk-sheriff-attorney-offices/89191944007/