Nick Baker (Kentucky politician)

Nick Baker
Baker in 1969
Member of the Kentucky Senate from the 38th district
In office January 1, 1970 – January 1, 1978
Preceded by	Vernon McGinty
Succeeded by	Danny Meyer
Personal details
Born	Henry Nicholas Baker 1937 (age 86–87) Hazard, Kentucky, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	Georgetown College (BA) University of Louisville (JD)

Henry Nicholas Baker (born 1937) is an American politician from Kentucky who was a member of the Kentucky Senate from 1970 to 1978. He is known for his efforts to promote women's basketball in Kentucky at the high school and collegiate levels.

Early life

Henry Nicholas Baker was born in Hazard, Kentucky in 1937. After graduating from Hazard High School in 1955, Baker attended Georgetown College, he was a member of Kappa Alpha alongside Carroll Hubbard. He studied briefly at the University of Kentucky, where he knew future governor John Y. Brown Jr. Baker then returned to Georgetown, from which he graduated in 1959. He then joined the U.S. Army Reserve and served six months of active duty. Baker moved to Louisville in 1960 and began law school at the University of Louisville School of Law. Before graduating in 1966, he worked for the General Motors Acceptance Corporation and an insurance claims adjuster.

Kentucky Senate

Baker was first elected to the senate in 1969, defeating incumbent Republican senator Vernon McGinty. He won reelection in 1973, but was defeated for renomination in 1977 by Danny Meyer.

During his time in the senate, Baker was a member of the committees on transportation, the judiciary, and cities; the latter of which he served as chair. Legislation sponsored by Baker included bills to standardize the colors of emergency vehicle lights and to standardize the system of license plate numbering. The license plate bill was also amended in committee to include a provision requiring license plates to be reflective. He additionally introduced a bill written by Louisville mayor Frank W. Burke to allocate federal funds for the city's parks. Baker later referred to the parks bill as a "breeze bill," or one that would pass without opposition.

On June 15, 1972, Baker was one of 20 Democratic senators that voted for Kentucky to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.

Baker served with Georgia Davis Powers, the first African American elected to the senate. In 2010, he was interviewed by Anne Onyekwuluge and discussed his work with her, her influence, and the civil rights movement.

Senate Bill 73

In 1974, Baker introduced Senate Bill 73. The bill required that any school with a men's basketball team that received state funds would also have to establish a women's team as well; women's basketball had been discontinued in Kentucky since 1932. As the Kentucky Historical Society would later note, the bill "met opposition from schools that did not want the extra cost associated with a girls’ team or the issues sharing facilities would bring ... but Baker persisted and it passed." The bill was also passed over the objections of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) who claimed they had organized a tournament which consisted only of a few parochial schools.

Later life

Baker was a probate commissioner and heard quarterly court cases in Jefferson County until 1983 and then maintained an active private practice in Louisville until retirement in 2016. He also served on the Kentucky Selective Service board and as a precinct election officer in Jefferson County, a role he has continued through 2024.

Family and relatives

Baker's mother played basketball in the late 1920s to early 1930s and was a member of Hazard High School's 1930 state championship team. Baker is the nephew of Gene Baker, who was the Republican candidate for the 23rd Senate district in 1955. Additionally, his uncle by marriage is Bill Engle; who was a Democratic member of the house and senate.