About 1,500 government officials from 15 Southern states will meet in Lexington beginning Saturday for the Southern Legislative Leadership conference.
Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers is the chairman of the 2016 conference, being held at the Hyatt Regency in Lexington. Most people attending will be state lawmakers, but the gathering will also include judges and some state executive officers.
Attendees are scheduled to package meals on Sunday morning for God's Pantry Food Bank in Lexington and will attend lectures about various issues, including criminal justice reform, voting trends and economic development.
The meeting will close with a discussion about politics with veteran Democratic consultant James Carville and his wife, veteran Republican consultant Mary Matalin. Matalin announced in May she has switched her party registration to the Libertarian Party.