Sannie Louise Overly (born July 2, 1966) is an American lawyer, engineer, and politician. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, Overly served in the

Kentucky House of Representatives The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a ...

, representing the 72nd district. She was the Democratic caucus chair from 2013 to 2017 (fifth-ranking in the majority), and is the first woman to serve in a leadership role in the Kentucky House. She was the Democratic Party nominee for

lieutenant governor of Kentucky The lieutenant governor of Kentucky was created under the state's second constitution, which was ratified in 1799. The inaugural officeholder was Alexander Scott Bullitt, who took office in 1800 following his election to serve under James Garra ...

in 2015, and was elected chair of the Kentucky Democratic Party in 2016.

Early life and education

Overly was born in

Millersburg, Kentucky Millersburg is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 792 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Millersburg was founded in 1817. It ...

, and graduated from Bourbon County High School. Overly graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Engineering with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...

in 1989, and the University of Louisville School of Law with a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...

in 1993.

Career

Overly served as president of the Bourbon County Bar Association and of the Paris–Bourbon County Historic Society. She worked as an engineer for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Overly ran in a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

to the

to succeed Carolyn Belcher as representative of the 72nd district. She won the election on January 8, 2008, and was sworn in on January 11. In 2009,

Greg Stumbo Gregory D. Stumbo (born August 14, 1951) is an American lawyer and former Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as Kentucky Attorney general from 2004 to 2008. He was the Democratic candidate ...

, the speaker of the Kentucky House, appointed Overly to chair the Budget Review Subcommittee, which has oversight over the state's roads. She became the first woman to chair the budget subcommittee. At the start of the 2013 session, Overly was elected caucus chair by her Democratic House colleagues, who chose her over

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seeking re-el ...

chair

Robert Damron Robert Douglas Damron (born October 27, 1972) is an American professional golfer, who has played on the PGA Tour. He is a studio analyst for the Golf Channel. Damron was born in Pikeville, Kentucky and raised there and later in Orlando, Florida ...

, making her the first woman to hold a leadership position in the Kentucky House. Overly had considered running in the 2014 election against Republican Andy Barr to represent in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...

. However, she instead ran for lieutenant governor of Kentucky on a ticket with Jack Conway in the 2015 gubernatorial election. Conway and Overly lost the election to Matt Bevin and his running mate, Jenean Hampton. In 2016, Overly was elected as the chair of the Kentucky Democratic Party. She opted not to seek reelection to the Kentucky House in 2018.

Personal life

Overly and her husband, Michael Kalinyak, live in

Paris, Kentucky Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. Paris is the seat of its county and forms part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As ...

, and have two daughters. Sannie Overly grew up on a farm in Millersburg, Kentucky. She is involved in local cooperatives in her District. Overly is Friends of the Paris-Bourbon Co Library. Bourbon Co Alumni Assoc. UK Alumni Assoc. Paris-Bourbon Co Chamber of Commerce. Bourbon Co Homemakers. DAR, Jemima Johnson Chapter. Bluegrass Conservancy.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Overly, Sannie 1966 births 21st-century American engineers 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Engineers from Kentucky Kentucky lawyers Kentucky women engineers Kentucky women in law Living people Democratic Party members of the Kentucky House of Representatives People from Paris, Kentucky State political party chairs of Kentucky University of Kentucky College of Engineering alumni University of Louisville School of Law alumni Women state legislators in Kentucky