By 1971 , Collins was the president of the Jayceettes ; through her work there , she came to the attention of Democratic state senator Walter " Dee " Huddleston . Huddleston asked Collins to co-chair Wendell Ford 's gubernatorial campaign in the 6th District . J.R. Miller , then-chairman of the state Democratic Party , commented that " She organized that district like you would n't believe . " After Ford 's victory , he named Collins as a Democratic National Committeewoman from Kentucky . She quit her teaching job and went to work full-time at the state Democratic Party headquarters , as secretary of the state Democratic party and as a delegate to the 1972 Democratic National Convention . The following year , she worked for Huddleston 's campaign for the U.S. Senate
1972 Democratic National Convention
1972 Democratic National Convention
Martha Layne Collins