Posted Tuesday, January 15, 2019 11:49 am

FRANKFORT, Ky. (KT) - The first Democrat filed for state auditor on Tuesday, providing a challenger to Republican incumbent Mike Harmon.



Chris Tobe said he filed for the office because he’d like to see more accountability and transparency in the state’s public pension system.



“I’m in my 22nd year of being told I’ve exaggerated the pension crisis in the state,” he said. “Ever since I joined [former State Auditor] Ed Hatchett’s office in the late 1990s.”



Tobe says he brings a 25-year financial background to the table. “I have a Master’s degree in finance and accounting, I have worked with public pension plans and public pension auditors for the states of Maryland and Utah, as well as being the original person to look at the Kentucky plans, 20 years ago.”



He has also served as a trustee for the Kentucky Retirement Systems.



Tobe has written a book, Kentucky Fried Pensions, which details some of the history of the pension crisis in Kentucky. His first edition was published in 2013, with an update in 2018.

He and his wife, Lisa Scott Tobe, live in Anchorage. They have six children and one grandchild.



Tobe and Harmon are the only candidates to file for state auditor with the Secretary of State’s office, although Democrat Josh Mers of Lexington has filed with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance, which allows him to begin fundraising.