John Barker reflects on Aug. 2 primary loss

Aug. 8—Last Tuesday, John Barker, 70th District Representative, lost to Scott Hill for reelection for his current position. While he has lost, Barker still has several months left in office.

"I just want to thank all the people who wrote letters of support. They were all positive," Barker said.

Barker said what set Hill's campaign over his is probably the people-to-people connections Hill made.

"I run a very positive campaign, as I always have. I never mention my opponent's name in anything. He has no record, no endorsements as far as I know, but he had a good ground game. He had people walking up the streets, and I think that probably made the difference. We had people too, just not as much as him," Barker said.

With the rest of his time in office, Barker said he will continue and finish his work on the several committees that tackle issues such as medical marijuana, intellectual/developmental disability waivers, post-audit and others.

As for after he steps down from his office, Barker said he does not know for now what he will do after. He'll still work to serve the community like he always has.

"My entire life, I've done community service, whether I was in the military or whether I was a judge or the last 10 years as a legislator," Barker said. "I'll still be involved in helping people any way I can, especially veterans. I may get more involved with working with veterans."

For now though, Barker is taking a vacation to Europe this month.

The general election will be Nov. 8.