
Matt Deneen
Republican | Kentucky
Candidate Profile
Conservative
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Matt Deneen
Party
Republican
Election Year
2026
Election
Republican Primary
Race
State Senator, Dist. 10
Incumbent
Yes
EDUCATION
Georgetown College, Georgetown Kentucky, Bachelor's Degree, 1986-1990
Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Masters Degree, 1993-1996
Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Rank 1
WORK & MILITARY
Educator/School Administrator, Teacher/Principal, 1992-2021
Elizabethtown City Council Member, Councilman, 2019-2022
Deneen Properties LLC, CEO, 2004-2026
Kentucky State Senate, State Senator District10, 2023-2026
AFFILIATIONS
Elizabethtown HeritageFoundation, Board Member, 2018-2020
Elizabethtown Airport Board, Board Member, 2019-2022
Hardin County History Museum Board, Board Member, 2024-2026
Severns Valley Baptist Church, Member, 1982-2026
Greenspace, Board Member, 2017-2026
Elizabethtown Trail Town Advisory Board, Chairman, 2018-2026
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
City Council Member, 2019-2022
State Senator, 2023-2026
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Re Election as State Senator District 10
SCORECARDS
CONSERVATIVE ORGANIZATIONS
LIBERAL ORGANIZATIONS
ENDORSEMENTS
CONSERVATIVE (1)
Freedoms Heritage Forum
LIBERAL (1)
IAFF Kentucky Professional Fire Fighters
REPORTED BY CANDIDATE (1)
Kentucky Professional Fire Fighters
SELECTED CONTRIBUTIONS
CONSERVATIVE
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (3)
Daniel Cameron (2023)
Stephen Meredith (2023)
Jim DuPlessis (2017)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (1)
Bluegrass Committee (2022)
LIBERAL
GIVEN BY CANDIDATE (0)
RECEIVED BY CANDIDATE (1)
Jimmie Lee (2018)
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Human life deserves legal protection from conception until natural death.
Strongly Agree
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not receive taxpayer funds from federal, state, or local governments (including Title X grants).
Strongly Agree
Under what circumstances should an elective abortion be allowed?
Elective no. Only in the case of a medical emergency
The lives of human embryos created through artificial methods ought to be protected from purposeful destruction.
Strongly Agree
The Comstock Act, which bans interstate transportation of abortion-inducing drugs, should be enforced.
Strongly Agree
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
What does "separation of church and state" mean to you?
Our country was founded on Judeo-Christian Values that are embedded into our founding documents. The Constitutional framework and the Bill of Rights were designed to ensure that the freedom of religion is protected.
Individuals and businesses should be required to provide services even if it would violate their moral and/or religious beliefs.
Strongly Disagree
NATIONAL SECURITY
The Chinese Communist Party poses serious military, cyber security, intellectual property, and global economic threats to the United States.
Strongly Agree
Is the United States' relationship with Israel important, and if so why?
As a State Senator I do not have a vote on international relations. That is left to Congress. Isreal has been and remains an ally and strategic partner of the United States in the Middle East.
HEALTHCARE
What most closely matches your view on healthcare: A) Healthcare for all should be guaranteed and funded by the government with no private healthcare option. (includes "universal healthcare," "medicare for all," etc.) B) Healthcare insurance funded by the government should be available for all who want it, along with private healthcare options. C) Medicaid and Medicare should remain available, but no other taxpayer-funded programs are necessary. D) Taxpayer funded health care should be abolished in all forms, and Medicaid and Medicare should be defunded.
Medicaid and Medicare should remain available and are designed to serve those in most need of assistance the poor, disabled and elderly.
The government should keep a database of people with various ongoing medical illnesses to assess the economic burden of treatment.
Disagree
ECONOMY
Free enterprise and the right to private property are essential elements of a productive economic system.
Strongly Agree
What is your position on the minimum wage?
The minimum wage is just that the minimum Can that be raised periodically yes. The market demand for employees drives employers to raise their pay on their own in order to compete for employees.
I support using taxpayer funds to lobby the state legislature.
Strongly Disagree
List your top 3-5 priorities to eliminate government waste.
Improving oversight and reporting requirements. Providing the general assembly with on-going and updated revenue and expenditure reports throughout the year Frequent Audits and oversight by the State Auditor's Office
IMMIGRATION
I support the existence of sanctuary cities to protect undocumented persons.
Strongly Disagree
EDUCATION
I support eliminating the U.S. Department of Education and giving control back to states and communities.
Agree
Foreign governments should be prohibited from funding American education.
Strongly Agree
CRIMINAL JUSTICE & PUBLIC SAFETY
What should be the goal of the criminal justice system?
Public safety and accountability
Sharia law should not be accepted or incorporated in any form within the legal framework of the United States.
Strongly Agree
The government should use automated-enforcement cameras to track speeding and criminal activity.
Neutral
Cameras have been incorporated to help save lives from child abductions to road construction zones and have helped locate stolen vehicles. There is a place for this type of law enforcement assistance, but it should be limited in scope.
2ND AMENDMENT
What restrictions on gun ownership are needed to protect public safety?
Kentucky is a second amendment sanctuary state. I believe strongly in the second amendment and the practices and procedures in place to purchase firearms and protect the public from unlawful sales and possession.
ABOUT YOU
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Conservative
Have you ever been penalized for sexual misconduct in either civil or criminal court? If so, please explain.
NO
Have you ever been convicted of a felony? If so, please explain.
NO
VALUES
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
My faith and my beliefs are practiced every day through daily devotionals, prayer groups and beginning every meeting in prayer. These values are based on my acknowledgement that Christ is King and that his guidance and blessings are needed and should be acknowledged everyday.
Marriage is a God-ordained, sacred and legal union of one man and one woman. No government has the authority to alter this definition.
Agree
I support the expansion of gambling in my state.
Neutral
Government should recognize and support the fundamental right and essential duty of parents to direct their child's upbringing, including their religious, health, and educational well-being.
Strongly Agree
Attempts to transition or encourage a child to transition to the opposite sex constitutes child abuse.
Strongly Agree
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
EQUALITY
Reparations should be given to people on the basis of race.
Strongly Disagree
Biological males should not be allowed to participate in women's sports or occupy biological women's spaces whether it be bathrooms, locker rooms, sorority houses, women's shelters, or prison.
Strongly Agree
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
What do you believe is the most reliable energy source that will supply the growing demand for electricity?
I believe in a "all of the above" approach to energy production. I support the responsible implementation of nuclear, natural gas, coal and any sources of energy to keep Kentucky competitive and energy cost down.
Man-made climate change is a global threat and requires urgent political action.
Disagree
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