James Paul David Bunning was an American professional baseball pitcher and politician from Kentucky who served in both chambers of the United States Congress,a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1987 to 1999 and a member of the United States Senate from 1999 to 2011. He is the sole Major League Baseball athlete to have been elected to both the United States Senate and the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Anne Meagher Northup is an American Republican politician and educator from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. From 1997 to 2007,she represented the Louisville-centered 3rd congressional district of Kentucky in the United States House of Representatives,where she served on the powerful House Appropriations Committee. She lost reelection to Democrat John Yarmuth in the 2006 election. She then ran for Governor of Kentucky,losing by 15 points to embattled governor Ernie Fletcher in the Republican primary election for the 2007 Kentucky gubernatorial election. Prior to her election to the United States House of Representatives,Northup had served in the Kentucky House of Representatives. Northup ran again for her old congressional seat in the 2008 election,losing again to Yarmuth.
Kenneth Ray Lucas is an American politician. Lucas,a Democrat,was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky's 4th congressional district from 1999 until 2005.
Ernest Lee Fletcher is an American physician and politician who was the 60th governor of Kentucky from 2003 to 2007. He previously served three consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives before resigning after being elected governor. A member of the Republican Party,Fletcher was a family practice physician and a Baptist lay minister and is the second physician to be elected Governor of Kentucky;the first was Luke P. Blackburn in 1879. He was also the first Republican governor of Kentucky since Louie Nunn left office in 1971.
Albert Benjamin Chandler III is an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States representative for Kentucky's 6th congressional district from 2004 to 2013. A Democrat,Chandler was first elected to Congress in a 2004 special election. He served until January 2013,having been defeated for re-election by Andy Barr in the 2012 elections.
United States gubernatorial elections were held in October and November 2007 in three states. The final results were a net change of zero among the parties. Republicans picked up the open seat in Louisiana and reelected incumbent Haley Barbour in Mississippi,while Democrats defeated Republican incumbent Ernie Fletcher in Kentucky.
The 2007 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held on November 6,2007. In this election,incumbent Republican governor Ernie Fletcher ran for reelection to a second term,but was soundly defeated by Democratic challenger Steve Beshear. A primary election to determine the Republican and Democratic nominees for governor was held on May 22,2007,in which Fletcher and Beshear won their respective primaries. Steve Beshear's son Andy was elected Kentucky's State Attorney General in 2015 and Kentucky's Governor in 2019 and 2023.
John William Conway is an American lawyer and politician from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. A member of the Democratic Party,Conway served as the 49th attorney general of Kentucky from January 7,2008,to January 4,2016. Prior to his election as attorney general,he was the nominee for Kentucky's 3rd congressional district in the 2002 elections,narrowly losing to Republican incumbent Anne Northup.
Larry Jones Hopkins was an American businessman and politician who represented Kentucky's 6th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1993. He was the Republican nominee for governor of Kentucky in 1991 and lost to Brereton C. Jones.
John Bayne Breckinridge was an American politician,a Democrat who served as Attorney General of Kentucky twice and also served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky.
Louis Gatewood Galbraith was an American author and attorney from the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. He was a five-time political candidate for governor of Kentucky.
The 2007 Kentucky elections for the statewide offices of governor,lieutenant governor,attorney general,auditor of public accounts,commissioner of agriculture,secretary of state,and state treasurer were held on November 6,2007. All incumbents were reelected with the exception of incumbent governor Ernie Fletcher,who was defeated in his reelection bid for governor by former Lieutenant Governor Steve Beshear. In addition,Democrats held the open Attorney General and State Treasurer posts.
The 2003 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held to elect the Governor of Kentucky on November 4,2003. Republican candidate Ernie Fletcher defeated Democrat Ben Chandler and became the first Republican governor of Kentucky in 32 years.
The 1998 United States Senate election in Kentucky was held November 3,1998. It was concurrent with elections to the United States House of Representatives. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Wendell Ford decided to retire,instead of seeking a fifth term. Republican U.S. Representative Jim Bunning narrowly won the open seat,defeating Democratic U.S. Representative Scotty Baesler. By a margin of 0.59%,this election was the second-closest race of the 1998 Senate election cycle,behind only the election in Nevada. Bunning's swearing-in marked the first time since 1973 that Republicans held both United States Senate seats from Kentucky. This was the first open-seat United States Senate election in Kentucky since 1972 and the first open-seat election for this seat since 1968.
Steven Lynn Beshear is an American attorney and politician who served as the 61st governor of Kentucky from 2007 to 2015. He served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1974 to 1980,was the state's 44th attorney general from 1980 to 1983 and was the 49th lieutenant governor from 1983 to 1987.
The 2004 United States House of Representatives special election in Kentucky's 6th congressional district was held on February 17,2004,to select the successor to Ernie Fletcher (R) who resigned upon being elected Governor of Kentucky. Each party held a nominating convention to choose their nominee for the special election. Republicans selected state Senator Alice Kerr over state Representatives Stan Lee and Lonnie Napier and Lexington city councilman Charles Ellinger II as their nominee while Democrats chose former state Attorney General and 2003 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Ben Chandler.
The 1991 Kentucky gubernatorial election took place on November 5,1991. Incumbent Governor Wallace Wilkinson was not eligible to seek a second term due to term limits established by the Kentucky Constitution,creating an open seat. At the time,Kentucky was one of two states,along with Virginia,which prohibited its governors from serving immediate successive terms. The Democratic nominee,Lieutenant Governor Brereton Jones,defeated Republican nominee and U.S. Congressman Larry J. Hopkins to win a term as governor.
Garland Hale "Andy" Barr IV is an American attorney and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Kentucky's 6th congressional district since 2013. A member of the Republican Party,he previously served in the administration of Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher.
The 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election took place on November 5,2019,to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Kentucky. The Democratic nominee,Andy Beshear,defeated Republican Incumbent governor Matt Bevin. It was the closest gubernatorial election by votes since 1899. It was the closest race of the 2019 gubernatorial election cycle.
Mark H. Metcalf is an American attorney and politician from Kentucky. A Republican,he is the 42nd Kentucky State Treasurer and the second Republican elected to this post since 1944.
