Kentucky State Senate Seat Still Up for Grabs

FRANKFORT, Ky. – Folks in Kentucky's 37th state Senate district are voiceless and sounding off about it.

"We don't have anyone seated there to speak for the district at this time," said resident Thomas Brewer.

"We need to have our voice heard in Frankfort," said resident Wade Hurt. "I wish it were settled."

The Kentucky Supreme Court will have the final say about the voiceless 37th district and who will be the winner of the state Senate's version of "musical chair."

The district, made up of Jefferson County, home of Louisville and its surrounding horse country, has gone unrepresented in the state Senate since last November. The election was held as scheduled last fall and a victor was declared, but then the sticky rules of residency got in the winner's way.

In the election, Dana Seum-Stephenson (search), a Republican, defeated Democrat Virginia Woodward (search) by more than 1,000 votes. But Woodward filed a lawsuit against her opponent challenging Stephenson's residency status.

"She did not fit the constitutional requirement," Woodward said.

Stephenson, 32, said she was born and raised in Louisville and it has always been home — except for four years when she moved away to go to college in neighboring Indiana. She returned in 2001.

During a hearing, Woodward's attorney argued that the state has a six-year residency requirement to hold office.

"The Constitution is pretty clear. It says six years previous to the election. It doesn't say five years and two months," Woodward said.

A Kentucky judge agreed and voided Stephenson's candidacy, making Woodward the winner.

But Woodward's victory was short-lived and her tenure as a state senator lasted three days. The Kentucky Senate's Republican majority, including Stephenson's father, Senate Majority Whip Dan Seum (search), voted to toss Woodward and declare Stephenson the winner.

"The Constitution clearly states that once an election has concluded, if there is any question about qualifications the Senate is to decide," Stephenson explained.

Franklin County Judge William Graham had other ideas, however. Early this month, he ruled that the Senate overstepped its authority and ordered Stephenson out of the seat. But perhaps anticipating legal appeals, Graham did not order Woodward to take the chair. Until the state Supreme Court rules, it sits empty in the Senate chamber.

FOX News' Steve Brown contributed to this report.