Kentucky's 4th congressional district is a
congressional district
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 ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
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 ...
. Located in the northeastern portion of the state, it is a long district that follows the
Ohio River
The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...
. However, the district is dominated by its far western portion, comprising the eastern suburbs of
Louisville
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
and
Northern Kentucky
Northern Kentucky is the third-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington, and its cities and towns serve as the de facto "south side" communities of Cincinnati, Ohio. The three main counties ...
, the Kentucky side of the
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
area.
The majority of voters live in the booming
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...
an Cincinnati counties of
Boone,
Kenton, and
Campbell Campbell may refer to:
People Surname
* Campbell (surname), includes a list of people with surname Campbell
Given name
* Campbell Brown (footballer), an Australian rules footballer
* Campbell Brown (journalist) (born 1968), American television ne ...
, which includes such suburbs as
Fort Mitchell,
Covington,
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
,
Newport, and
Fort Thomas. The next-largest population center is the eastern suburbs of Louisville (including a small portion of Louisville itself). It also serves the far western suburbs of
Lexington.
The district is currently represented by
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 ...
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 ...
, who was elected in a special election in 2012 to succeed
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 ...
Geoff Davis
Geoffrey Clark Davis (born October 26, 1958) is an American businessman, politician and former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2005 to 2012. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes 24 counties in the northeastern p ...
, who resigned on July 31, 2012, citing family concerns.
Characteristics
The 4th was one of the first areas of Kentucky to turn
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 ...
outside of traditionally Republican south-central Kentucky; it has been in GOP hands for all but six years since 1967. Its politics are dominated by Republicans in the wealthy Cincinnati suburbs, which have swelled with former Cincinnati residents since the early 1960s. Between them, Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties have as many people as the rest of the district combined. As a measure of how much the Cincinnati suburbs have dominated the district, when Massie took office, he became the first congressman from the district's eastern portion in 45 years. Nonetheless,
Democrats still hold state and local offices in rural counties.
Until January 1, 2006, Kentucky did not track party affiliation for registered voters who were neither
Democratic nor
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 ...
.
The Kentucky voter registration card does not explicitly list anything other than Democratic Party, Republican Party, or Other, with the "Other" option having a blank line and no instructions on how to register as something else.
Recent presidential elections
List of members representing the district
Recent election results
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
See also
*
Kentucky's congressional districts
Kentucky is currently divided into 6 congressional districts, each represented by a member of the United States House of Representatives. The number of congressional districts has been set at 6 since the 1990 United States census, 1990 redistricti ...
*
List of United States congressional districts
Congressional districts in the United States are electoral divisions for the purpose of electing members of the United States House of Representatives. The number of voting seats in the House of Representatives is currently set at 435, wit ...
References
*
*
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present
{{coord, 38, 33, 57, N, 84, 25, 40, W, region:US_type:city_source:kolossus-eswiki, display=title
04
Boone County, Kentucky
Boyd County, Kentucky
Bracken County, Kentucky
Campbell County, Kentucky
Carroll County, Kentucky
Gallatin County, Kentucky
Grant County, Kentucky
Greenup County, Kentucky
Harrison County, Kentucky
Henry County, Kentucky
Jefferson County, Kentucky
Lewis County, Kentucky
Mason County, Kentucky
Oldham County, Kentucky
Owen County, Kentucky
Pendleton County, Kentucky
Shelby County, Kentucky
Spencer County, Kentucky
Trimble County, Kentucky
Constituencies established in 1803
1803 establishments in Kentucky
Constituencies disestablished in 1933
1933 disestablishments in Kentucky
Constituencies established in 1935
1935 establishments in Kentucky