Name, age, family:

My name is Eric Eugene Jude. I’m 45 years old and a lifelong resident of Martin County. I reside on Ked Fletcher Road off Frog Pond. I’ve been married to Marsha (Fletcher) Jude for 19 years and we have three children: Joshua (18), Gena (14), and Madalynn (10). I’m the son of Milton Ford and Alana Jude of Pilgrim.

Education/work experience:

I’m a 1995 graduate of Sheldon Clark High School. I worked 19 years in various surface coal mines, some I had to travel one hour or longer to work. During my time at the mines, I earned Kentucky and West Virginia foreman’s certifications and instructor certification in Kentucky. In 2014, after the war on coal began, I enrolled in Big Sandy Community and Technical College and earned an associate degree in Computer Information Technology. I used that degree to acquire a job as 911 Coordinator for the Martin County Fiscal Court, where I oversaw the more than half-million-dollar upgrade to the new 911 Dispatch Center located in the Martin County Government Center.

To what extent have you been a part of the local government in Martin County?

I worked for the Martin County Judge-Executive and Fiscal Court for five years (June 2016-May 2021). During that time, I served as 911 Coordinator, Emergency Management Director, Flood Plain Coordinator, County Road Mapping Coordinator, Social Media Coordinator, just to name a few. I worked five active disasters, including COVID. I acquired over 400 hours of training in my fields. I was able to obtain several grants, including over $700,000 in reimbursements from FEMA. I was also selected as one of six nominees (out of 120 counties) for Kentucky Emergency Management Association’s “Director of the Year” in 2020.

What is your vision for the future of Martin County?

My vision for the future of Martin County is to make a valiant attempt to restore integrity to our fine county. Reestablish a decent name for us on the State and National levels. To do away with the corrupt politics that keep us from bringing in jobs and other opportunities for our young people. To make great strides toward having clean water and to one day soon start construction on a new water plant. My vision for the future of this county runs far deeper than anyone could imagine. My plans are plentiful, and I see greater things coming soon.

What do you believe to be the top three issues affecting Martin County?

For me, it’s really hard to pick just three to be considered as TOP issues. With my administration, all issues will be dealt with as Top Priorities. But to discuss a few, I’ll go with our water situation first. This is a problem that has been ongoing for many years, and we need a person in the judge’s office that will go to Frankfort and fight for every nickel that we can get to help remedy this situation. We need a person that will work with the Water Board and Alliance Water to bring in the help needed to bring our water loss down. I will be that person! My hopes are that as we bring down the water loss, then hopefully our rates will come back down too.

Second, we need to start focusing on bringing more jobs to the county. Whether it’s one job or 100 jobs, we need to welcome any and all business opportunities with open arms. We need to give them all the help and support they need to get started and continue to help them succeed in any way possible. Just because it’s not going to benefit a select few personally, there’s no reason to turn a deaf ear to any pitch for business.

Working to bring reliable high-speed internet to the county for those who can’t get it would be a major boost with the “work from home” market being as strong as it is today. So many in this county would benefit from the option to work from home due to the fact that so many residents can’t go get jobs because they can’t afford transportation to get to work.

Our roads and bridges have deteriorated to the point where some roads are almost impossible to travel. We can’t get potholes fixed; we can’t get the weeds mowed. All because most of our equipment is so worn out it breaks down anytime you try to use it. Our Road and Bridge Department is understaffed and needs help. During flooding events where roads and bridges are damaged, projects are not completed accurately due to lack of materials, supplies, and equipment, causing the county to lose out on sufficient reimbursements from FEMA and State Emergency Management for damage projects.

To hear my views on my many other ideas for the vast number of issues plaguing our county, tune in to my LIVE videos on “Eric Jude for Martin County Judge 2022” on Facebook.

What changes/goals would you advocate and why?

The first of many changes that I will advocate when I’m elected is to turn the county over to the people. The people of this county deserve better; they deserve more transparency; they deserve to know just what is going on with local government and just how their money is being used. I will conduct meetings in every community monthly on a rotation. I will listen to their concerns and will research any and all ideas that they have. The Fiscal Court’s monthly meetings will be advertised so that the people have the opportunity to attend and they will be allowed to speak on every agenda item, not just at the beginning or end of the meetings. The members of the Fiscal Court will receive all documentation pertaining to the agenda items approximately 48 hours in advance to give them adequate time to read over every item. These agenda packets will be delivered to their homes the Tuesday before the meeting. I will not throw a 30-page document in front of the magistrates five minutes before the meetings and tell them it needs to be voted tonight.

The county’s administrative code is definitely in need of an upgrade. To my knowledge, the one being used now is from the 70s. A lot of policies that are in play today are terribly outdated. We need to be stricter on how the taxpayer’s money is being spent. In my five years with the Fiscal Court, I saw lots of wasteful spending. I will address that immediately.

The above is just an overview of what I have planned once I take office. I want the people to get ready to help me, help them.

My overall goals are to bring more jobs, more opportunities for our people; fix our water and our roads and bridges; bring more tourism opportunities; try to reduce taxes for once. I want the 2030 census to show an increase in population, not another decline. To do that, everyone needs to try to work together for the better of our county. No more of this leave-them-out, do-it-my-way attitude.

In no more than 500 words, tell us why voters should choose you for this office?

Martin County, it’s time we take our county back. It’s time that you finally start getting a return for your tax dollars. It’s time that you elect someone to the judge’s office that has YOUR best interest at heart. It’s time you elect someone who is not afraid to make a cut in the budget instead of implementing a tax increase. Our people are already taxed to death. Our elderly and disabled are struggling to hold on to their homeplaces. Some have to do without their medicine just to pay their taxes. It’s time you elect someone who will be fair across the board and work with every district, not just the ones whose magistrate votes the way you want them to.

I spent five years with the fiscal court, I know where a lot of the wasteful spending is, and it’s time we address that and return that money to the people. We need to welcome anyone who has a vision to open a business in Martin County with open arms, whether it’s one job or 100 jobs. We need them to succeed, especially if they struggle. There’s no need to turn a deaf ear to an idea just because it wouldn’t benefit a select few.

I will not fill you full of broken promises. I will NOT promise anyone anything I know I can’t deliver on. If you bring an issue to my attention, it will be researched and you will be contacted with the results. The only promise I will make to you, the people, will be that I will work diligently to bring help to our county and try to restore some of its integrity. I will not pick and choose what organizations I work with. I’ll be open to any and all that need my help. I promise to leave my office open for you at all times. I will return your call if I’m not available when you call. I will come to your home if I’m not available when you come to see me. This will not be an 8-4 job for me. I will work days, nights, weekends, holidays, whatever it takes to see that the people of this county are taken care of. I will go to Frankfort and fight for every dollar we can get to fix our water, our roads, bring jobs and reliable internet to the county, just to name a few.

Martin County, I WILL NOT BE CONTROLLED BY ANYONE. I WILL WORK FOR YOU. Any ideas from the public will be listened to just as those from top officials. Our people are a vital part of whether or not Martin County succeeds at anything. WITH ME, THERE ARE NO BAD IDEAS.

Again, to hear my views on my many other ideas for the vast amount of issues plaguing our county, tune in to my LIVE videos on “Eric Jude for Martin County Judge 2022” on Facebook.

Martin County, I humbly ask for your vote and support on May 17. The Time for Change is NOW!! Let’s take our county back!!