FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Gov.-elect Matt Bevin has tapped a veteran of both politics and policy to help guide him through his first term as Kentucky’s second Republican governor since 1971.
Bevin announced James “Blake” Brickman as his chief of staff on Thursday. Brickman is the former chief of staff for U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning and a former law clerk to U.S. District Judge Amul Thapar in eastern Kentucky. Plus Brickman managed U.S. Rep. Andy Barr’s successful re-election campaign in 2014 and was a key adviser to state Sen. Ralph Alvarado, the first Hispanic member of the Kentucky state Senate.
Brickman is the grandson of former Democratic Gov. Edward T. “Ned” Breathitt, who served from 1963 to 1967.
This is the second hire of Bevin’s administration. Bevin announced M. Stephen Pitt as his general counsel on Tuesday.