- Source: 2023 Kentucky elections
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Kentucky on November 7, 2023.
Notably, few Democratic candidates ran for statewide offices. The Lexington Herald-Leader attributed this to Kentucky's strong Republican lean and the fact that Republicans gained seats in the Kentucky General Assembly in 2022. However, Democrats have pointed to recent victories by liberal judges in nonpartisan elections and the defeat of a 2022 ballot measure that would have removed abortion rights from the Kentucky Constitution as signs that they can still win in the state. In addition to the candidates listed below, former state representative Attica Scott was speculated as a potential statewide candidate, but she did not run for any office in 2023.
Governor
Incumbent governor Andy Beshear ran for re-election. He faced Republican nominee, incumbent attorney general Daniel 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. Despite this apparent late momentum for Cameron, Beshear went on to comfortably win re-election by five percentage points, improving on his 2019 performance by 4.6 percentage points.
Attorney general
Incumbent attorney general Daniel Cameron ran for governor.
Kentucky State Representative for the 43rd District Pamela Stevenson announced a run to succeed Cameron. She was the only high-profile state-level Democrat (barring Andy Beshear and Jacqueline Coleman) to have announced a run for statewide office.
Russell Coleman, former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky was the only Republican candidate to have declared a run, and thus won the Republican primary unopposed.
Coleman would go on to win the election by 16 percentage points. He also narrowly improved on Daniel Cameron’s win in 2019 by 0.6 percentage points.
Secretary of state
Incumbent secretary of state Michael Adams ran for re-election. He faced former state representative Charles "Buddy" Wheatley.
Unlike 2019, the race was not close. Adams won re-election by 21.2 percentage points, improving upon his past performance by 16.7 percentage points.
Treasurer
Incumbent treasurer Allison Ball was term-limited and could not seek re-election. She ran successfully for state auditor.
= Republican primary
=Candidates
= Nominee =
Mark Metcalf, Garrard County Attorney
= Eliminated in primary =
Andrew Cooperrider, businessman
OJ Oleka, former deputy state treasurer
= Endorsements =
= Democratic primary
=Candidates
= Nominee =
Michael Bowman, special assistant to Lieutenant Governor Jacqueline Coleman, former bank manager, and nominee for state treasurer in 2019
= Declined =
Neville Blakemore, construction executive and candidate for state treasurer in 2015
Matthew Lehman, pharmaceutical executive and nominee for Kentucky's 4th congressional district in 2022
= Endorsements =
= General election
=Auditor of Public Accounts
Incumbent Auditor Mike Harmon was term-limited and could not seek re-election. He ran for governor.
= Republican primary
=Candidates
= Nominee =
Allison Ball, state treasurer
= Eliminated in primary =
Derek Petteys
= Democratic primary
=Candidates
= Nominee =
Kim Reeder, tax attorney
= Endorsements =
= General election
=Agriculture Commissioner
Incumbent Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles ran for governor.
= Republican primary
=Candidates
= Nominee =
Jonathan Shell, former majority leader of the Kentucky House of Representatives
= Eliminated in primary =
Richard Heath, state representative and candidate for agriculture commissioner in 2015
= Democratic primary
=Candidates
= Nominee =
Sierra Enlow, economic development consultant and former Louisville Economic Development Manager
= Eliminated in primary =
Mikael Malone
= Declined =
Rocky Adkins, senior advisor to Governor Andy Beshear, former minority leader of the Kentucky House of Representatives, and candidate for governor in 2019
= Endorsements =
= General election
=Polling
See also
Elections in Kentucky
Politics of Kentucky
Political party strength in Kentucky
Notes
Partisan clients
References
External links
Official campaign websites for Secretary of State
Michael Adams (R) for Secretary of State
Buddy Wheatley (D) for Secretary of State
Official campaign websites for Treasurer
Michael Bowman (D) for Treasurer
Mark Metcalf (R) for Treasurer
Official campaign websites for Auditor
Allison Ball (R) for Auditor
Kim Reeder (D) for Auditor
Official campaign websites for Agriculture Commissioner
Sierra Enlow (D) for Ag Commissioner
Jonathan Shell (R) for Ag Commissioner
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- Geraldine Ferraro
- Amerika Serikat
- Ketua Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Amerika Serikat
- Pemilihan umum Senat Amerika Serikat di Virginia 2018
- Pemilihan umum Senat Amerika Serikat di Wisconsin 2018
- Tim Walz
- 2020-an
- Proklamasi Emansipasi
- Madonna
- Perang Korea
- 2023 Kentucky elections
- 2023 Kentucky gubernatorial election
- 2024 Kentucky elections
- 2023 United States gubernatorial elections
- 2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky
- 2023 Kentucky Attorney General election
- 2024 United States presidential election in Kentucky
- 2024 Kentucky Senate election
- 2023 Kentucky Secretary of State election
- 2026 United States Senate election in Kentucky
