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Ageneral election was held in the U.S. state ofKentucky on November 3, 2015. All of Kentucky's executive officers were up for election.Primary elections were held on May 19, 2015.
Incumbent DemocraticGovernorSteve Beshear was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office.
In Kentucky, gubernatorial candidates pick their own running mates and they are elected on shared tickets in both the primary and general elections.
The candidates for the Democratic nomination wereAttorney General of KentuckyJack Conway and his running mate State RepresentativeSannie Overly;[1] and retired engineer and 2014 Congressional candidateGeoff Young and his running mate Jonathan Masters.[2] Conway and Overly easily defeated Young and Masters in the primary election for the Democratic Party nomination.[3]
For the Republicans, businessman and candidate for theU.S. Senate in2014Matt Bevin ran on a ticket withTea Party activist and 2014State House candidate Jenean Hampton;[4] Agriculture Commissioner of KentuckyJames Comer ran on a ticket with State SenatorChristian McDaniel;[5][6] formerLouisville Metro Councilman and nominee forMayor ofLouisville in2010 Hal Heiner ran on a ticket with formerLexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman and nominee forKentucky State Treasurer in2011KC Crosbie;[7][8] and former Associate Justice of theKentucky Supreme CourtWill T. Scott ran on a ticket with formerMenifee County Sheriff Rodney Coffey.[9][10] Bevin held an 83-vote lead over Comer in the primary election, with both Heiner and Scott conceding. TheAssociated Press, referring to the race between Bevin and Comer a "virtual tie", did not call the race in favor of either candidate. In addition, Comer refused to concede and stated that he would ask for a recanvass.[11] The request for recanvass was filed with theKentucky Secretary of State's office on May 20, 2015, with Secretary of StateAlison Lundergan Grimes ordering the recanvass to occur at 9:00 a.m. local time on May 28, 2015.[12][13] Upon completion of the recanvass, Grimes announced that Bevin remained 83 votes ahead of Comer. Grimes also stated that should Comer want a fullrecount, it would require a court order from theFranklinCircuit Court.[14] On May 29, Comer announced he would not request a recount and conceded the nomination to Bevin.[15]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Matt Bevin/Jenean Hampton | 511,771 | 52.5 | |
| Democratic | Jack Conway/Sannie Overly | 426,827 | 43.8 | |
| Independent | Drew Curtis/Heather Curtis | 35,627 | 3.7 | |
| Total votes | 974,225 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||
Incumbent DemocraticSecretary of StateAlison Lundergan Grimes was eligible to run for re-election to a second term in office. She had considered running forGovernor of Kentucky or forAttorney General of Kentucky.[17][18][19] She decided to seek re-election.
Declared
Declined
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alison Lundergan Grimes (incumbent) | 131,640 | 73.25 | |
| Democratic | Charles Lovett | 48,083 | 26.75 | |
| Total votes | 179,723 | 100.0 | ||
Declared
Withdrew
Declined
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) | Steve Knipper (R) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[30] | October 23–26, 2015 | 798 | ± 3.5% | 50% | 37% | — | 12% |
| WKU[31] | October 19–25, 2015 | 770 | ± 3.5% | 46% | 35% | — | 19% |
| SurveyUSA[32] | September 22–27, 2015 | 701 | ± 3.8% | 46% | 38% | — | 15% |
| SurveyUSA[33] | July 22–28, 2015 | 685 | ± 3.8% | 46% | 40% | — | 12% |
| Public Policy Polling[34] | June 18–21, 2015 | 1,108 | ± 2.9% | 42% | 47% | — | 12% |
| Gravis Marketing[35] | January 5–6, 2015 | 608 | ± 4% | 47% | 46% | — | 7% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Alison Lundergan Grimes (incumbent) | 493,598 | 51.2 | |
| Republican | Steve Knipper | 471,209 | 48.8 | |
| Total votes | 964,807 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
Incumbent Democraticattorney generalJack Conway was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office. He instead ran for governor. The candidate that would go on to be elected Attorney General wasAndy Beshear, the son of retiring governorSteve Beshear.
Beshear defeatedRepublicanWhitney Westerfield by a margin of 0.2 percent, getting 50.1% of the vote to Westerfield's 49.9%.[36][37] The margin was approximately 2,000 votes.[38]
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 County results Congressional district resultsHarmon: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Edelen: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Democraticstate auditorAdam Edelen had considered running for governor in 2015, even lining up a running mate, but ultimately declined to do so. He instead ran for re-election to a second term in office.[39]
Declared
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Declined
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Adam Edelen (D) | Mike Harmon (R) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[30] | October 23–26, 2015 | 798 | ± 3.5% | 42% | 34% | — | 22% |
| WKU[31] | October 19–25, 2015 | 770 | ± 3.5% | 40% | 35% | — | 25% |
| SurveyUSA[32] | September 22–27, 2015 | 701 | ± 3.8% | 35% | 33% | — | 27% |
| SurveyUSA[33] | July 22–28, 2015 | 685 | ± 3.8% | 35% | 31% | — | 30% |
| Public Policy Polling[34] | June 18–21, 2015 | 1,108 | ± 2.9% | 33% | 39% | — | 27% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Adam Edelen (D) | John Kemper (R) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gravis Marketing[35] | January 5–6, 2015 | 608 | ± 4% | 30% | 38% | — | 32% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mike Harmon | 486,741 | 51.9 | |
| Democratic | Adam Edelen (incumbent) | 450,316 | 48.1 | |
| Total votes | 937,057 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||
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 County results Congressional district results State house district resultsBall: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Nelson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% | |||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent DemocraticState TreasurerTodd Hollenbach was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office. He had said that he may run for another office in 2015, but did not specify which, and eventually declined to run for another statewide office.[23] He instead successfully ran for an open seat on the Jefferson County District Court, defeating 20 other candidates.[41]
Declared
Declined
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Rick Nelson | 44,397 | 27.17 | |
| Democratic | Neville Blakemore | 36,663 | 22.44 | |
| Democratic | Richard Henderson | 32,914 | 20.14 | |
| Democratic | Jim Glenn | 31,146 | 19.06 | |
| Democratic | Daniel B. Grossberg | 18,284 | 11.19 | |
| Total votes | 163,404 | 100.0 | ||
Declared
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Allison Ball | 84,516 | 46.88 | |
| Republican | Jon Larson | 55,712 | 30.91 | |
| Republican | Kenny Imes | 40,039 | 22.21 | |
| Total votes | 180,267 | 100.0 | ||
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Rick Nelson (D) | Allison Ball (R) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[30] | October 23–26, 2015 | 798 | ± 3.5% | 35% | 37% | — | 25% |
| WKU[31] | October 19–25, 2015 | 770 | ± 3.5% | 32% | 37% | — | 31% |
| SurveyUSA[32] | September 22–27, 2015 | 701 | ± 3.8% | 33% | 35% | — | 28% |
| SurveyUSA[33] | July 22–28, 2015 | 685 | ± 3.8% | 36% | 33% | — | 29% |
| Public Policy Polling[34] | June 18–21, 2015 | 1,108 | ± 2.9% | 32% | 41% | — | 26% |
| Gravis Marketing[35] | January 5–6, 2015 | 608 | ± 4% | 32% | 34% | — | 35% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Allison Ball | 571,455 | 60.6 | |
| Democratic | Rick Nelson | 372,416 | 39.4 | |
| Total votes | 943,871 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||
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 County resultsCongressional district resultsQuarles: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Spann: 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Republican Agriculture CommissionerJames Comer did not run for re-election to a second term in office. He instead ran for governor, and was defeated by Matt Bevin in the Republican primary.
Declared
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Declared
Declined
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ryan Quarles | 92,700 | 50.39 | |
| Republican | Richard Heath | 91,273 | 49.61 | |
| Total votes | 183,973 | 100.0 | ||
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Ryan Quarles (R) | Jean-Marie Lawson Spann (D) | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[30] | October 23–26, 2015 | 798 | ± 3.5% | 40% | 33% | — | 24% |
| WKU[31] | October 19–25, 2015 | 770 | ± 3.5% | 37% | 30% | — | 33% |
| SurveyUSA[32] | September 22–27, 2015 | 701 | ± 3.8% | 34% | 31% | — | 29% |
| SurveyUSA[33] | July 22–28, 2015 | 685 | ± 3.8% | 33% | 32% | — | 30% |
| Gravis Marketing[35] | January 5–6, 2015 | 608 | ± 4% | 39% | 31% | — | 30% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ryan Quarles | 563,383 | 60.1 | |
| Democratic | Jean-Marie Lawson Spann | 374,402 | 39.9 | |
| Total votes | 937,785 | 100.0 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
A non-partisan special election was held along with the May 19, 2015 primary elections to fill the 7th district seat of theKentucky Supreme Court.[61] The seat was vacated when JusticeWill T. Scott resigned to run for governor.[62] The winner of the election was elected to serve the remainder of Scott's term, with the seat coming up for re-election next in 2020.
Declared
Withdrew
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Sam Wright | 40,676 | 51.85% | |
| Independent | Janet Stumbo | 37,772 | 48.15% | |
| Total votes | 78,448 | 100% | ||
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See also:Political party strength in Kentucky | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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