LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Perennial candidate Gatewood Galbraith died in 2012, but that might not stop his name from appearing on the 2015 ballot for Kentucky governor.
No, he’s not running from beyond the grave.
Terrill Wayne Newman, 68, of Pulaski County legally changed his name on Tuesday to Gatewood Galbraith before filing paperwork Wednesday to run as an independent for the state’s highest office.
The Secretary of State’s office says independent candidates must obtain 5,000 signatures from registered voters by Aug. 11 to get their names on the general election ballot.
Newman told the Lexington Herald-Leader (http://bit.ly/1xDIDcm ) he doesn’t expect to be elected but, “I sure do hope this warms Gatewood’s grave.”
Galbraith ran for governor five times and gained a following for his wit and his stances on legalizing hemp and marijuana.
Newman said he’ll run on a similar platform, but will focus on his namesake.
“I mostly will be talking about the great Gatewood Galbraith,” he said.
Newman says he and Galbraith were “not friends per se,” but they shared mutual friends and knew each other on a first-name basis.
Dea Riley, who was Gatewood Galbraith’s running mate in 2011, said she thinks Galbraith would find Newman’s name change amusing.
“I can hear him now: ‘I’ll tell the IRS to send him the tax bill,'” Riley said.
But she also said Newman “has very big shoes to fill” with his new name and she hopes he will honor it.
“To have Gatewood’s name and message prostituted, for the sake to garner political office, is a personal affront to me in that I was not only his running mate but equally his friend and confidant,” Riley said.
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