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Ageneral election was held in theU.S. state ofKentucky on November 7, 2023.[1]
Notably, few Democratic candidates ran for statewide offices. TheLexington Herald-Leader attributed this to Kentucky'sstrong Republican lean and the fact that Republicans gained seats in theKentucky General Assembly in 2022. However, Democrats have pointed to recent victories by liberal judges in nonpartisan elections and the defeat ofa 2022 ballot measure that would have removed abortion rights from theKentucky Constitution as signs that they can still win in the state.
IncumbentgovernorAndy Beshear ran for re-election.[2] He faced Republican nominee, incumbent attorney generalDaniel Cameron. Due to his high favorability ratings, Beshear was considered the favorite in the election; however, polling tightened in the week leading up to the election.[3] Despite this apparent late momentum for Cameron, Beshear went on to comfortably win re-election by five percentage points, improving on his2019 performance by 4.6 percentage points.
Incumbentsecretary of stateMichael Adams ran for re-election.[4] He faced former state representativeCharles "Buddy" Wheatley.
Unlike2019, the race was not close. Adams won re-election by 21.2 percentage points, improving upon his past performance by 16.7 percentage points.
Incumbentattorney generalDaniel Cameron ranfor governor.[5]
Kentucky State Representative for the 43rd DistrictPamela Stevenson announced a run to succeed Cameron. She was the only high-profile state-level Democrat (barring Andy Beshear andJacqueline Coleman) to have announced a run for statewide office.[6]
Russell Coleman, formerU.S. Attorney for theWestern District of Kentucky was the only Republican candidate to have declared a run, and thus won the Republican primary unopposed.[7][8]
Coleman would go on to win the election by 16 percentage points. He also narrowly improved onDaniel Cameron’s win in2019 by 0.5 percentage points.
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 County results Congressional district resultsBall: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Reeder: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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IncumbentAuditorMike Harmon was term-limited and could not seek re-election. Heran for governor.[9]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Allison Ball | 190,685 | 72.4 | |
| Republican | Derek Petteys | 72,581 | 27.6 | |
| Total votes | 263,266 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Allison Ball | 782,736 | 60.7 | |
| Democratic | Kim Reeder | 505,742 | 39.3 | |
| Total votes | 1,288,478 | 100 | ||
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 County resultsCongressional district resultsMetcalf: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Bowman: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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IncumbenttreasurerAllison Ball was term-limited and could not seek re-election. She ran successfully forstate auditor.[10]
Statewide officials
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Metcalf | 135,400 | 51.2 | |
| Republican | Andrew Cooperrider | 77,347 | 29.3 | |
| Republican | OJ Oleka | 51,582 | 19.5 | |
| Total votes | 264,329 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Metcalf | 735,066 | 57.2 | |
| Democratic | Michael Bowman | 549,257 | 42.8 | |
| Total votes | 1,284,323 | 100 | ||
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 County resultsCongressional district resultsShell: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Enlow: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Agriculture CommissionerRyan Quarlesran for governor.[21]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jonathan Shell | 148,169 | 56.5 | |
| Republican | Richard Heath | 114,291 | 43.5 | |
| Total votes | 262,460 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sierra Enlow | 103,243 | 58.7 | |
| Democratic | Mikael Malone | 72,560 | 41.3 | |
| Total votes | 175,803 | 100 | ||
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size[a] | Margin of error | Jonathan Shell (R) | Sierra Enlow (D) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Opinion Strategies (R)[27][A] | July 19–20, 2023 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 45% | 27% | 27% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jonathan Shell | 762,992 | 59.4 | |
| Democratic | Sierra Enlow | 522,335 | 40.6 | |
| Total votes | 1,285,327 | 100 | ||
Partisan clients
Official campaign websites for Secretary of State
Official campaign websites for Treasurer
Official campaign websites for Auditor
Official campaign websites for Agriculture Commissioner
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See also:Political party strength in Kentucky | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
