Republicans and Democrats finalize candidate lineups for Kentucky elections in 2024
By: Bruce Schreiner | AP
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FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s congressional and legislative campaigns came into focus Friday as Republicans and Democrats completed candidate lineups for 2024 elections lacking a marquee race for statewide office unlike last year, when the state was in the limelight with its hotly contested gubernatorial contest.
All six Kentucky congressmen — five Republicans and one Democrat — filed for reelection. They all will be challenged, either in the spring primary or the November general election.
Democrats again failed to field legislative candidates across swaths of rural Kentucky, while a number of Republican state lawmakers will encounter primary challenges. It reflects the diminished Democratic brand in much of rural Kentucky and the GOP’s continued growth, leading to competitive primaries. Republicans have amassed supermajorities in both the Kentucky House and Senate.
“Kentucky continues to trend toward the Republican Party,” GOP House Speaker David Osborne told reporters several hours before the candidate filing deadline. “Therefore more and more seats are determined in the Republican primary.”
Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams ceremoniously closes the door to the room where candidates can file for office, Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 in Frankfort, Ky. Friday was the filing deadline for 2024 elections in Kentucky. [Bruce Schreiner | AP]
Candidates, political strategists and reporters clustered outside the secretary of state’s office in the final hours before the deadline. Popcorn was offered as a snack. When the deadline arrived, Secretary of State Michael Adams ceremoniously closed the door to the office where candidates file their paperwork.
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It lacked the drama of the deadline a year ago, when former Republican Gov. Matt Bevin teased a bid for a political comeback. Bevin arrived at the statehouse, gave a speech to a throng of media and then left without filing. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who ousted Bevin in 2019, went on to win reelection over GOP challenger Daniel Cameron in one of the most closely watched elections of 2023.
In 2024, congressional and statehouse candidates will run in districts drawn by the state’s GOP-dominated legislature. Democrats challenged the maps for congressional and state House districts, but Kentucky’s Supreme Court upheld the boundaries in a ruling last month. The legislature convened its 60-day session this week, and crafting the next two-year state budget will be at the top of the agenda.
In the presidential contest, President Joe Biden will be on the primary ballot in Kentucky along with fellow Democrats Dean Phillips and Marianne Williamson. On the GOP side, former President Donald Trump will be on the Kentucky ballot in a field that includes Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Chris Christie and Vivek Ramaswamy. Trump easily carried Kentucky in the last two general elections for president.
In legislative races, Republican incumbents drawing primary challengers ranged from relative newcomers to veteran state Reps. Kimberly Poore Moser and Michael Meredith who lead House committees.
With their lineup now complete, Republicans said they enter this year’s campaigns with momentum on their side, despite losing the state’s marquee gubernatorial election last year.
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“From the candidate filings, one thing is clear: there is more energy within the Republican Party than ever,” state GOP Chairman Robert Benvenuti said in a statement.
Democrats, hoping to cut into the GOP’s lopsided legislative majorities, said they targeted suburban and rural districts where Beshear ran well last year. State Democratic Party Chair Colmon Elridge offered a preview of his party’s agenda heading into the campaigns.
“This November, public education, healthcare access, infrastructure, the opportunity to lift everyone up and move Kentucky forward, all of that is on the line and the Kentucky Democratic Party intends to fight for it,” Elridge said in a statement.
Seeking new terms from Kentucky’s congressional delegation will be Republican Reps. James Comer, Brett Guthrie, Thomas Massie, Hal Rogers and Andy Barr, as well as Democratic Rep. Morgan McGarvey.
The lead up to the filing deadline was dominated by announcements from some prominent state lawmakers that they would not seek reelection in 2024. Among the lawmakers stepping down after this year are Republican Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer, GOP state Rep. Kevin Bratcher and state Rep. Derrick Graham, the top-ranking Democrat in the House.
The Kentucky Wildcats are set for a road matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs. Game time is set for 7 PM ET on the SEC Network. You can watch the game online using ESPN+ or tune in via radio stream through the UK Sports Network.
Fresh off another top-10 win over Florida, Kentucky now heads into its first road game of the SEC season, which is also another Quad I opportunity vs. a solid Georgia team that’s 12-2 with wins over Notre Dame (home), St. John’s (neutral), and Georgia Tech (away).
Kentucky technically has a road win over Gonzaga, but that’s considered to be a semi-away game (at least via KenPom), so this is a chance for the Cats to notch their first true road win of the season.
Koby Brea was initially listed as questionable to play tonight, but it looks like he’ll give it a go in Athens.
Kentucky’s Republican-dominated legislature convened Tuesday to start a 30-day session expected to include action to reduce the state’s individual income tax rate. GOP lawmakers also will resume efforts to curb diversity, equity and inclusion practices on college campuses.
While their constituents back home were digging out from a massive winter storm, the House and Senate gaveled into session at midday amid the usual opening day pomp. New lawmakers were welcomed and stacks of bills were introduced in both chambers. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear will present his priorities in his State of the Commonwealth speech, set for Wednesday evening.
With supermajorities in both chambers, Republican legislators will set the agenda and determine the outcome of legislation. They wield enough clout to override any gubernatorial vetoes.
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Priorities will include a measure to reduce the individual income tax rate to 3.5% from 4%, to take effect in 2026. Top GOP lawmakers announced last year that the state had met the financial conditions needed to set in motion another cut in the tax rate.
Since Republicans passed a tax overhaul in 2022, the personal income tax has gradually been reduced by increments of a half-percentage point, conditioned on meeting benchmarks that ensure revenues are sufficient to meet state spending needs.
Lawmakers also will focus on unfinished business from a year ago, including the push to limit diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at public universities. Anti-DEI legislation died last year i n Kentucky amid a House-Senate impasse — resulting in a rare setback for the GOP on a priority, hot-button issue. It reflects a broader conservative quest in GOP-led states to curb DEI initiatives.
The prospect of DEI legislation resurfacing in 2025 had an impact on some campuses. The University of Kentucky announced last August that it was disbanding its office promoting diversity and inclusion efforts in response to questions from state policymakers. The university’s president stressed that the school’s core values remained intact — to protect academic freedom and promote a “sense of belonging” for everyone on campus, regardless of background or perspective.
Lawmakers could also debate whether to bolster oversight of Medicaid — a joint federal and state program that provides health coverage for low-income Kentuckians and people with disabilities.
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Spending on Medicaid accounts for a significant portion of the state budget and the program covers more than a third of Kentucky’s population, Republican state Rep. Adam Bowling said recently.
“We have a deeply vested interest in ensuring that the program is operating effectively and efficiently for both those who depend on it and the taxpayers who pay for it,” Bowling said.
Lawmakers’ biggest responsibility — crafting a state budget — won’t be on the agenda this year since they passed a two-year budget in 2024. But they could choose to reopen the budget this year to make adjustments or insert new spending items.
Lawmakers will meet this week and then head home until early February, when the 2025 session will resume. The session will wrap up in late March.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Wildcats -2.5; over/under is 155
BOTTOM LINE: No. 6 Kentucky plays Georgia after Koby Brea scored 23 points in Kentucky’s 106-100 win against the Florida Gators.
The Bulldogs have gone 9-0 at home. Georgia is 10-2 against opponents over .500.
The Wildcats are 1-0 in SEC play. Kentucky has a 9-2 record against opponents above .500.
Georgia’s average of 7.3 made 3-pointers per game this season is just 0.2 fewer made shots on average than the 7.5 per game Kentucky gives up. Kentucky has shot at a 48.9% rate from the field this season, 10.2 percentage points above the 38.7% shooting opponents of Georgia have averaged.
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The Bulldogs and Wildcats match up Tuesday for the first time in SEC play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Asa Newell is averaging 15.4 points and 6.8 rebounds for the Bulldogs.
Brea averages 3.2 made 3-pointers per game for the Wildcats, scoring 12.7 points while shooting 52.3% from beyond the arc.
LAST 10 GAMES: Bulldogs: 8-2, averaging 78.3 points, 34.2 rebounds, 15.6 assists, 10.0 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 49.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 60.9 points per game.
Wildcats: 8-2, averaging 88.6 points, 35.2 rebounds, 18.8 assists, 7.3 steals and 4.4 blocks per game while shooting 48.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.3 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
