Cunningham is one of four union members running for the House in the Democratic primary
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first in a series of stories about the quartet of candidates.
By BERRY CRAIG
AFT Local 1360
Marshall countian Alton Cunningham is one of a quartet of union members running for the state House of Representatives in the May 22 Democratic primary.
The longtime IUPAT member tossed his hat in the ring for the Kentucky House District Six seat that’s being vacated by Will Coursey, Cunningham’s fellow Democrat and Marshall County resident.
A resident of the Palma community, Cunningham seems suited for the district. He resided in Lamasco in Lyon County before moving to Marshall County. His union office was in Paducah.
A Marshall County resident for 35 years, Cunningham retired a little over a year ago as business representative for IUPAT District Council 91, which encompasses the entire state of Indiana, the western half of Kentucky and the middle third of Tennessee. The district also takes in some territory in southeastern Illinois.
Cunningham was headquartered in the IUPAT Local 500 hall on Paducah’s North 13th Street.
“I decided to run because I love the counties in the district,” said the native of Trigg County, which is just beyond the Sixth District. “I’ve been blessed. I’ve got three children who have good jobs in the area.
“I want to retain good jobs in the district and bring in more good jobs for all working families in the district and across the state. I’d love to see my grandchildren and the grandchildren of others in the district to have the opportunity to work and stay here.”
The union is a Cunningham family affair. His son, Alton III, is a District 91 field representative. Al Jr. packs a Painter’s retiree card. He’s been in the union going on 38 years.
After attending Trigg County High School, Cunningham worked on local farms and on towboats on the Mississippi, Tennessee and Ohio rivers. The latter two waterways flow through the Sixth District, which is in western Kentucky.
He ultimately landed a job in construction, helping complete busy Interstate 24, which funnels cars and trucks through Marshall, Lyon and McCracken counties.
“I decided I needed to be in the union if I wanted to better myself,” he said. Cunningham joined Local 500 in 1980. He climbed the officer ranks from warden, or doorkeeper, to financial secretary-treasurer, vice president and president before being elected to the district post.
Cunningham retired at the end of 2016. “People had mentioned to me in the past about running, but it was never on my agenda,” he said.
Cunningham decided to file in the primary because he thought, “I just can’t sit back and let the Rs take another seat down here without giving it a fight. I told [those who urged him to run] I’d rather fight and lose than not fight at all.”
Cunningham faces opposition in the May 22 primary from two other Democrats. Two Republicans filed in the GOP primary.
Cunningham and his wife, Penny, have been married for 34 years. They have three children, Faye Dodd of Murray and Brittney Cunningham and Alton III both of Calvert City, and three grandchildren, Nora Aayden and Maci.
Cunningham attends the Zion’s Cause Baptist Church in Marshall County. He serves on the board of directors at the Jackson House-W.B. Sanders Retirement Center and is also on the Kentucky Housing Corporation Executive Board.
More information is available from the candidate via email at alcunninghamforkystaterep@gmail.com.
Richard Becker, James DeWeese and Eldon Renaud are the other primary hopefuls who are trade unionists.
Becker, a SEIU-NCFO organizer from Louisville, is running for the House District 35 seat being vacated by veteran Democratic State Rep Jim Wayne. He will face off against a trio of Democratic primary opponents.
DeWeese, from Bardstown, is a UPS ground agent with Louisville-based Teamsters Local 89. He has no primary opposition.
Renaud, who is retired, was president of UAW Local 2164 in Bowling Green for many years. The Bowling Green resident is one of five Democrats seeking to succeed 20th District State Rep. and former House Speaker Jody Richards, who is retiring.