'Stay out of all Walmarts': Kentucky GOP house candidate arrested on strangulation charge

A Republican primary candidate for an open seat in the Kentucky General Assembly was recently arrested by law enforcement in a neighboring county and charged with several crimes.

According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, 53-year-old Brian Ormes was booked Monday night on charges of first-degree strangulation, menacing and fourth-degree assault. Ormes is running in the GOP primary for House District 67, which encompasses most of the city of Newport, just across the Ohio River from Cincinnati. The district is currently represented by Rep. Rachel Roberts, who is the second highest-ranking Democrat in the Kentucky legislature. Roberts is not seeking reelection, making the seat far more competitive in the upcoming election.

While details of the alleged crime are scarce, Ormes was ordered to not contact the alleged victim as part of his bond agreement from Kenton County District Court, and to "stay out of all Walmarts" in order to remain in compliance with the court.

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Ormes' personal Facebook page shows he works as an electrician. He previously ran Boss Construction, though a 2021 document from the Kentucky Public Service Commission shows the company was administratively dissolved in 2020 after being hit with fines for allegedly damaging a gas pipeline in the construction of a retaining wall.

The 53-year-old mostly uses his profile to share memes attacking President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. Though in a video posted on March 25, he accused Roberts of engaging in a conspiracy to register undocumented immigrants to vote. That accusation stemmed from her vote against a bill to amend Kentucky's constitution to prevent non-citizens from voting (there are currently no municipalities in Kentucky that allow non-citizens to vote).

"Folks, this is what it's about. They want to bring illegals in, give them the right to vote, and change the world as we know it," Ormes said in the video. "Help me make Campbell County red again."

On Ormes' official campaign Facebook page, he advertised an April 20 event suggesting former Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball star Jared Prickett, who played for the school's 1996 national championship team, would make an appearance. It's unclear if that event is still happening given Ormes' recent criminal charges.

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Ballotpedia's page on Ormes shows he is running in a three-way race for the Republican nomination against Jerry Gearding and Terry Hatton. The lone Democrat in that race is Matthew Lehman, who unsuccessfully ran against Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) to represent the commonwealth's 4th Congressional District in 2022.

Ormes was released on a $2,500 bond from the Kenton County Jail. The 67th House District is in Campbell County, which is adjacent to the county where Ormes was arrested.

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