The 2023 Kentucky gubernatorial election will be held on November 7, 2023, to choose the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

and

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

of Kentucky. Incumbent Democratic Governor

Andy Beshear Andrew Graham Beshear (born November 29, 1977) is an American attorney and politician who has served as the 63rd governor of Kentucky since December 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the son of the 61st governor of Kentucky, Steve B ...

is running for re-election to a second term. Primaries will be held on May 16, 2023. The winner of the 2023 gubernatorial election is scheduled to be sworn in on December 12, 2023.

Background

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 to ...

is generally considered a

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 ...

leaning state, as of 2023 both of its

U.S. Senators 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 power ...

and all but one

member Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

of the Kentucky congressional delegation belong to the Republican Party. In the

2020 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2020 lists the national/federal elections held in 2020 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 January: **C ...

, Republican

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

carried Kentucky by 26 percentage points. Despite these results, the Democratic Party remains competitive, especially in certain local and state-level elections. In the

2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election The 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 2019, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Kentucky. The Democratic nominee, Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear, defeated Republican incumbent Matt Bevin by jus ...

, the state's Attorney General, Democrat Andy Beshear defeated incumbent

Matt Bevin Matthew Griswold Bevin (; born January 9, 1967) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 62nd governor of Kentucky, from 2015 to 2019. He was the third Republican elected Kentucky governor since World War II, after Ernie Fletc ...

. Bevin had been saddled with low approval ratings and heavy criticism for, among other things, signing a pension reform bill for teachers. Beshear, who enjoys high approval ratings with Kentucky voters, has decided to seek re-election. This election is expected to be competitive as Beshear remains popular, but must overcome the state's partisan lean again to be re-elected.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

, incumbent governor **Running mate:

Jacqueline Coleman Jacqueline Coleman (born June 9, 1982) is an American educator and politician serving as the 58th Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky, lieutenant governor of Kentucky since 2019. She has worked as an administrator, high school teacher, and coach (bas ...

, incumbent lieutenant governor *

Peppy Martin Peppy Martin, (born Josephine Ellen Martin on May 14, 1946) is a Kentucky politician who was the unsuccessful Republican nominee in the 1999 gubernatorial election. Early career In her early years, Martin was an intern for Republican U.S. Senator ...

, public relations firm owner and Republican nominee for governor in

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

* Geoff Young, perennial candidate

Endorsements

Fundraising

Beshear is the only candidate who has filed a financial disclosure.

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

Daniel Cameron Daniel, Dan or Danny Cameron may refer to: Politicians *Daniel Alexander Cameron (1870–1937), Canadian politician from the province of Nova Scotia *Daniel R. Cameron (1885–1933), lumber merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia, Canada *Dan ...

Attorney General of Kentucky The Attorney General of Kentucky is an office created by the Kentucky Constitution. (Ky.Const. § 91). Under Kentucky law, they serve several roles, including the state's chief prosecutor (KRS 15.700), the state's chief law enforcement officer (K ...

* Jacob Clark * David Cooper, member of the

Kentucky Army National Guard The Kentucky Army National Guard is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the US Army's available combat forces and approximately one t ...

Kelly Craft Kelly Dawn Craft (; born February 24, 1962) is an American businesswoman, political donor, politician, and former diplomat who served as the United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2019 to 2021. Craft previously served as the United ...

, former

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations The United States ambassador to the United Nations is the leader of the U.S. delegation, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. The position is formally known as the permanent representative of the United States of America to the United Nations ...

**Running mate:

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 ...

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

* Eric Deters, suspended attorney **Running mate: Wesley Deters, former Park Hills city councilman * Bob Devore, former McCreary County school board member and perennial candidate *

Mike Harmon Michael Joseph Harmon (born January 24, 1958) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 47 Chevrolet Camaro for Mike Harmon Racing. In the past, he drove in ...

, Kentucky State Auditor *Alan Keck, mayor of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

* Dennis Ormerod *

Ryan Quarles Ryan Francis Quarles (born October 20, 1983) is an American Republican politician who has served as Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky since 2016. He served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 2011 to 2016. Early life and education ...

, Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture * Johnny Rice, militia activist and former police officer * Robbie Smith, high school teacher

Did Not File

* Anthony Moore, wellwater drilling contractor

Withdrawn

Savannah Maddox Savannah Lee Maddox (born November 2, 1987) is an American politician. She is a Republican and represents District 61 containing Grant County, Gallatin County, and parts of Kenton and Boone Counties in the Kentucky House of Representatives. Madd ...

state representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

Declined

Ralph Alvarado Ralph A. Alvarado (born April 30, 1970) is an American physician and politician and is currently serving as the 15th Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health. He served as a member of the Kentucky Senate representing the 28th District ...

and nominee for lieutenant governor in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

''(appointed commissioner of the

Tennessee Department of Health The Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) is the primary agency of state government in Tennessee responsible for public health. Its workforce provides a variety of direct and indirect services to residents and visitors in all 95 counties of the ...

)'' *

Allison Ball Allison Ball (born August 27, 1981) is an American attorney and politician who serves as the Kentucky State Treasurer. She is a member of the Republican Party. Early years and career Ball is a ninth-generation Eastern Kentuckian. Her family h ...

Kentucky State Treasurer The Kentucky State Treasurer is elected every four years along with the governor and other statewide officials. The treasurer, who can serve two terms, acts as the state's chief elected fiscal officer.Kentucky TreasureWebsite/ref> The salary is $1 ...

''( running for state auditor)'' *

, former governor * James Comer,

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

for and candidate for governor in

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

''(endorsed Craft)'' *

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 ...

for ''(previously endorsed Maddox)'' *

John Schnatter John Hampton "Papa John" Schnatter (born November 22 or 23, 1961) is an American entrepreneur who founded the Papa John's pizza restaurant chain in 1984. Schnatter started the business in the back of his father's tavern after selling his car and ...

, founder and former CEO of

Papa John's Papa John's International, Inc., d/b/a Papa Johns, is an American pizza restaurant chain. It is the fourth largest pizza delivery restaurant chain in the United States, with headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky and Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan ...

''(running for lieutenant governor with Craft)''

Endorsements

Fundraising

Some candidates have not filed financial disclosures. Those who have are listed below:

Polling

Graphical summary

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared

* Brian Bush, home remodeling contractor and

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

veteran * David Ferguson * Clint Johnson, reverend

General election

Predictions

Polling

;Andy Beshear vs. Daniel Cameron ;Andy Beshear vs. Kelly Craft ;Andy Beshear vs. Mike Harmon ;Andy Beshear vs. Ryan Quarles

Notes

;Partisan clients

References

Gubernatorial A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political_regions, political region, ranking under the Head of State, head of state and in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of ...

2023 Events Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** Croatia will adopt the eu ...

Background

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Endorsements

Fundraising

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

Did Not File

Withdrawn

Declined

Endorsements

Fundraising

Polling

Graphical summary

Results

Independents

Candidates

Declared

General election

Predictions

Polling

See also

Notes

References

External links