2019 Kentucky elections
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A general election was held in the U.S. state of Kentucky on November 5, 2019, with all executive offices in the state up for election. Primary elections were held on May 21, 2019.[1]
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Governor and Lieutenant Governor
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| Turnout | 42% | |||||||||||||||||||
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County results | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 2019, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Kentucky.[2] The Democratic nominee, Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear, defeated Republican incumbent Matt Bevin by a margin of just over 5,000 votes, or 0.37%.[3] It was the closest gubernatorial election in Kentucky since 1899 by total votes, and the closest ever by percentage.[4]
Bevin won 97 counties, while Beshear won only 23 counties.[5] Beshear carried only two of the state's six congressional districts, but those districts were the state's two most urbanized, the Louisville-based 3rd and the Lexington-based 6th.[6]
Bevin conceded on November 14, after a recanvass took place that day that did not change the vote count.[7][8][9] Libertarian John Hicks also qualified for the ballot and received 2% of the vote. Statewide turnout was just over 42%,[10] much higher than for the 2015 gubernatorial election. The result was a major swing from 2016, when Donald Trump won the state by 30 points and Republicans gained a supermajority in both chambers of the Kentucky General Assembly.
Results
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Cameron: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 2019 Kentucky Attorney General election was conducted on November 5. Primary elections occurred on May 21, 2019.[12] The general election was held on November 5, 2019. Incumbent Democratic attorney general Andy Beshear declined to seek reelection to a second term to successfully run for Governor. Republican Daniel Cameron defeated Democrat Greg Stumbo.[13] He became the first Republican attorney general of Kentucky since 1948,[14] and the state's first black attorney general.[15]
Results
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Adams: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% | |||||||||||||||||
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Incumbent Democratic Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes was ineligible to run for a third term due to term limits. This was the only statewide race in Kentucky in 2019 besides the gubernatorial election in which the Democratic candidate came close to winning and the only non-gubernatorial statewide election in KY, LA or MS where the Democrat achieved more than 45% of the vote in 2019.
- Jason Belcher, U.S. Air Force veteran and writer[1]
- Jason Griffith, teacher and businessman[1]
- Heather French Henry, former Commissioner of Veterans Affairs of Kentucky and former Miss America[1]
- Geoff Sebesta, comic book artist[1]
- Michael Adams, general counsel for the Republican Governors Association and former Mitch McConnell aide[1]
- Andrew English, former general counsel for the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet and U.S. Navy veteran[1]
- Stephen Knipper, cyber security expert, former Erlanger city councilman, and nominee for secretary of state in 2015[1]
- Carl Nett, former counterintelligence officer[1]
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Michael Adams |
Andrew English |
Stephen Knipper |
Carl Nett |
Undecided |
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| Cygnal | May 10–12, 2019 | 600 | ± 4.0% | 11% | 10% | 7% | 5% | 68% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Heather French Henry (D) |
Michael Adams (R) |
Undecided |
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| Clarity Campaign Labs (D)[A] | August 12–13, 2019 | 792 | ± 3.3% | 52% | 37% | 9% |
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Harmon: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% | |||||||||||||||||
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- Mike Harmon, incumbent State Auditor of Kentucky[1]
- Kelsey Hayes Coots, teacher[1]
- Sheri Donahue, former U.S. Navy engineer[1]
- Chris Tobe, pension consultant[1]
- Drew Curtis, founder of Fark and independent candidate for governor in 2015[16]
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Ball: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% | |||||||||||||||||
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- Allison Ball, incumbent State Treasurer of Kentucky[1]
- Michael Bowman, bank manager and former Louisville Metro Council staffer[1]
- Josh Mers, insurance agent and treasurer for the Lexington Human Rights Commission[1]
Agriculture Commissioner
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Quarles: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80-90% >90% | |||||||||||||||||
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- Bill Polyniak, farmer and hemp businessman[1]
- Ryan Quarles, incumbent Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky[1]
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Bill Polyniak |
Ryan Quarles |
Undecided |
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| Cygnal | May 10–12, 2019 | 600 | ± 4.0% | 8% | 35% | 58% |
- Robert Haley Conway, district supervisor of the Scott County Soil and Water Conservation Board and former chair of the Scott County Board of Education[1]
- Joe Trigg, Glasgow city councilman[1]
- Christopher Shea Nickell, Kentucky Court of Appeals judge for the 1st Appellate District, Division 1[17]
- Whitney Westerfield, member of the Kentucky Senate for the 3rd District and candidate for attorney general in 2015[18]
Nickell
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50–60%
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60–70%
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70–80%
Westerfield
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50–60%
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60–70%
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70–80%
Both candidates were registered Republicans, but the election was conducted under a non-partisan format.[19]
- Partisan clients
- ^ Poll sponsored by Democratic Attorney General Association
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Barton, Ryland (January 30, 2019). "Here's Who's Running For Kentucky Governor And Other Offices". WKMS. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
- ^ "Kentucky gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2019". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
- ^ "Watch live: Democrat Andy Beshear speaks after declaring victory in Kentucky election". CBS News. November 6, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
- ^ Watson, Kathryn (November 6, 2019). "Watch live: Democrat Andy Beshear speaks after declaring victory in Kentucky election". CBS News. Archived from the original on January 10, 2021. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
- ^ "Voter turnout for 2019 general election". WKYT. November 6, 2019.
- ^ J. Miles Coleman. "... Beshear carried #KY03 (Louisville) by 37% & #KY06 (metro Lexington) by 14%. He only won two CDs, but his districts also had the highest turnout. Beshear also kept #KY04 (Cincy suburbs) close," Twitter.
- ^ Lemieux, Melissa (November 5, 2019). "Gov. Matt Bevin refuses to concede Kentucky race, even after Secretary of State calls it for Democrat Andy Beshear". Newsweek. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
- ^ Barton, Ryland (November 6, 2019). "Kentucky GOP Gov. Bevin Officially Requests Recanvass Of Election Results". NPR.org. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- ^ "Gov. Matt Bevin won't contest results, concedes from gubernatorial race". WLKY. November 14, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
- ^ ACQUISTO, Alex. "Voter turnout tops 41 percent in tight race for Kentucky governor". Lexington Herald Leader. Retrieved November 5, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g "2019 General Election" (PDF). Kentucky State Board of Elections. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- ^ "Election calendar" (PDF). elect.ky.gov. 2019.
- ^ Wiegel, David (May 23, 2019). "Democrats look past 2020". Washington Post. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
- ^ "President Trump endorses Daniel Cameron in Kentucky attorney general race". WKYT-TV. July 29, 2019. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
- ^ Crain, Brennan (July 31, 2019). "Trump endorses Cameron for attorney general". WCLU. Archived from the original on August 1, 2019. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
- ^ "Democrat Drew Curtis withdraws from auditor's race". Associated Press. April 2, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
- ^ "Appellate judge announces run for Supreme Court seat". Associated Press. February 6, 2019. Retrieved May 14, 2019.
- ^ Peterson, Erica (October 21, 2019). "Ky. Supreme Court Candidates Offer Starkly Different Resumes". 89.3 WFPL News Louisville. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- ^ Niemeyer, Liam. "Nickell Elected To Kentucky Supreme Court". www.wkms.org.
- ^ "Kentucky intermediate appellate court elections, 2019". Ballotpedia.
- Official campaign websites for Secretary of State
- Michael Adams (R) for Secretary of State
- Heather French Henry (D) for Secretary of State Archived 2019-08-10 at the Wayback Machine
- Official campaign websites for Auditor
- Official campaign websites for Treasurer
- Official campaign websites for Agriculture Commissioner
- Official campaign websites for Supreme Court