The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky were held on November 8, 2016, to elect the six

U.S. representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, one from each of the state's six

congressional districts Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

. The elections coincided with the

2016 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2016 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2016 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *7 January: Kiri ...

, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives,

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative ...

to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

and various

and

local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...

. The primaries were held on May 17.

District 1

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Ed Whitfield Wayne Edward Whitfield (born May 25, 1943) is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative of from January 1995, until his resignation in September 2016. He is a member of the Republican Party, and the first to repr ...

, who had served 11 terms, did not run for re-election for a 12th term. Republicans James Comer, the Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky, and Michael Pape, Witfield's district director, ran for the Republican Party nomination. Other potential Republican candidates included former Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky nominee

Robbie Rudolph 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 prima ...

, businessman Todd P'Pool,

George W. Bush administration George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic ...

official J. Scott Jennings, and Whitfield's chief of staff Cory Hicks. State Senator

Max Wise George Maxwell Wise (born June 28, 1975) is an American politician and former FBI agent, serving as a member of the Kentucky Senate from the 16th district. He assumed office in the Kentucky Senate on January 1, 2015. Former U.S. Ambassador to th ...

also was considered a potential candidate, but he endorsed Comer. In the May 17th primary, Comer won with 61% of the vote and went on to face Democrat Sam Gaskins in the general election.

Special election

Whitfield resigned on September 6, 2016. A special election was held on November 8, concurrently with the regularly-scheduled election.

Candidates

=Republican

= ;Declared * James Comer, former Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner and candidate for governor in 2015

=Democratic

= ;Declared * Sam Gaskins, construction worker

Republican primary

Candidates

;Declared * James Comer, former Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner and candidate for governor in 2015 * Jason Batts, Hickman County Attorney * Michael Pape, district director for Congressman

* Miles A. Caughey Jr. ;Declined *

, incumbent U.S. Congressman (endorsed Pape) *

, state senator (endorsed Comer) * Todd P'Pool, former Hopkins County Attorney and nominee for attorney general in 2011 * Cory Hicks, former chief of staff to Congressman

* J. Scott Jennings, former White House aide *

, businessman, former secretary of Executive Cabinet, former State Secretary of Finance and nominee for lieutenant governor in 2007

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

;Declared * Sam Gaskins, construction worker ;Withdrew *Tom Osborne, attorney ;Declined * John Tilley, Secretary of the Kentucky Department of Justice and Public Safety and former state representative *

Dorsey Ridley J. Dorsey Ridley (born November 26, 1953) is an American politician. He was a member of the Kentucky State Senate from the 4th District, serving from 2004 to 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Ridley also served in the Kentucky House ...

, state senator * Gerald Watkins, state representative * Brandi Harless, vice chair of the

Kentucky Democratic Party The Kentucky Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The party is a longstanding institution in the Commonwealth; 45.7% of Kentuckians were registered as Democrats in 2022, more than the 44.8% who ...

and co-founder and CEO of Personal Medicine Plus * David Ramey, chair of the Calloway County Democratic Party

General election

Results

District 2

Brett Guthrie Steven Brett Guthrie (born February 18, 1964) is an American businessman and politician serving as the U.S. representative for . The district is in central Kentucky and includes Fort Knox, Owensboro, Bowling Green, and Danville. Guthrie previo ...

had represented the district since being elected in 2008 and filed to run for re-election.

General election

Results

District 3

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

John Yarmuth John Allan Yarmuth ( ; born November 4, 1947) is an American politician and former newspaper editor serving as the U.S. representative for since 2007. His district encompasses the vast majority of the Louisville Metro Area. Since 2013, he has ...

had represented the district since being elected in 2006 and filed to run for re-election.

Republican primary

Republicans Harold Bratcher, Everett Corley and Robert DeVore Jr. competed in the May primary for the chance to challenge Yarmuth.

Candidates

* Harold Bratcher * Everett Corley * Robert DeVore Jr.

Results

General election

Results

District 4

Thomas Massie Thomas Harold Massie (born January 13, 1971) is an American politician and businessman. A member of the Republican Party, Massie has been the United States representative for Kentucky's 4th congressional district since 2012, when he defeated Bi ...

had represented the district since being elected in 2012 and filed to run for re-election. Calvin Sidle, who formerly ran for Pikeville City Commissioner, ran for the Democratic nomination.

General election

Results

District 5

Hal Rogers had represented the district since being elected in 1980 and filed to run for re-election. He was be challenged by Republican John Burk Jr.

Republican primary

Candidates

* Hal Rogers, Incumbent Congressman * John Burk, Jr.

Results

General election

Results

District 6

Andy Barr had represented the district since being elected in 2012 and filed to run for re-election. He was challenged in the May primary by Roger Brill. Matt Jones, host and founder of Kentucky Sports Radio, considered challenging Representative Barr, but announced on November 23, 2015, that he would not do so. Rev. Nancy Jo Kemper, a graduate of

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

and former executive director of the Kentucky Council of Churches, announced she would run for the Democratic nomination on January 21, 2016. She had the support of former Lt. Governor Crit Luallen, State Senator Reggie Thomas, State Representative Susan Westrom, and Secretary of State

Alison Lundergan Grimes Alison Case Lundergan Grimes (born November 23, 1978) is an American lawyer and Democratic politician who was the secretary of state of Kentucky from 2012 until 2020. Grimes was elected in 2011 after defeating incumbent Elaine Walker in the D ...

. Geoff Young, candidate for governor in Kentucky in 2014, and Michael Coblenz, a candidate for Kentucky state house in 2010 competed with Kemper for the chance to challenge Barr in the general election. Michael Coblenz later withdrew, leaving Rev. Kemper and Young as the only Democratic candidates.

Republican primary

Candidates

* Andy Barr, Incumbent Congressman * Roger Brill

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

* Nancy Jo Kemper * Geoffrey "Geoff" M. Young

Results

General election

Results

References

External links

U.S. House elections in Kentucky, 2016
at Ballotpedia
Campaign contributions
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP) ...

{{2016 United States elections

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United States House The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...