Former senator Albert Robinson gets GOP nomination to replace Jensen in Senate

The Republican Committee from the 21st state Senate District nominated former Republican Sen. Albert Robinson to take the place of Sen. Tom Jensen on the Nov. 6 ballot.

Robinson received the nomination after a secret ballot vote by the committee. The vote is weighted by population of the counties in the district: Laurel, Estill, Jackson, Menifee and Powell counties.

Jensen withdrew Aug. 10 from his re-election bid in order to seek an open circuit court judgeship. Because he was running unopposed for his third term, his withdrawal created a vacancy on the ballot allowing both political parties the chance to nominate replacements on the ballot.

Robinson, who previously served in the Senate from 1994 to 2004, has been criticized for his role trying to raise pension benefits for lawmakers in 2000.

The Democratic Party has until Aug. 24 to nominate a candidate. But the London Sentinel Echo reported that no Democrats have stepped forward yet.