Whitney H. Westerfield (born November 29, 1980) is an American attorney, politician and 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 ...

member of the

Kentucky Senate The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. There are no term limits for Kentucky Senators. The Kentu ...

representing District 3 since January 8, 2013. In 2015, Westerfield was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for

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 ...

, losing to Democrat

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 ...

by a margin of 0.2 percent.

Education

Westerfield earned his BS in

communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

from the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...

in 2003, and his JD from

Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU or SIUC) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois. Founded in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. The university enrolls students from all 50 s ...

in 2006.

Early career

In 2012, Westerfield challenged District 3 incumbent Democratic Senator Joey Pendleton, Westerfield was unopposed for the May 22, 2012 Republican primary and won the November 6, 2012 general election with 18,457 votes (50.4%) against Pendleton. The

American Conservative Union The American Conservative Union (ACU) is an American political organization that advocates for conservative policies, ranks politicians based on their level of conservatism, and organizes the Conservative Political Action Conference. Founded on ...

gave him a 90% evaluation in 2017. In 2015, Westerfield ran for

. He lost to Democrat

by a very narrow margin. Beshear defeated Westerfield by a margin of 0.2 percent, getting 50.1% of the vote to Westerfield's 49.9%. The margin was approximately 2,000 votes. In 2019, Westerfield ran for Kentucky Supreme Court District 1. He lost the general election to fellow Republican Christopher Shea Nickell. In 2020, Westerfield ran unopposed in the primary, and drew a Libertarian Party opponent in the General, but wa
re-elected with nearly 80% of the vote (29,640 to 8,157)
On March 30, 2023, Westerfield announced that he will not seek re-election in 2024.

Current career

Westerfield serves as the chairman of th
Senate Judiciary Committee
Senator Westerfield also serves as a member on th
Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Protection Committee
the Agriculture Committee; th
Natural Resources and Energy Committee
th
Child Welfare Oversight and Advisory Committee
th
Tobacco Settlement Agreement Fund Oversight Committee
th
Budget Review Subcommittee on Justice and Judiciary
and serves as co-chair of the Juvenile Justice Oversight Council. Westerfield serves as a Senate member on a new (2021
Commission on Race and Access to Opportunity
attached to the Kentucky legislature's administrative agency, the Legislative Research Commission. He formerly served on both th
Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee
(formerly known as the Program Review and Investigations Committee) and the Senate Bill 192 (heroin and controlled substance-related legislation) Oversight Committee. Westerfield serves as a member in several approved caucuses including th
Kentucky Sportsmen's Caucus
(Member)
Western Kentucky Caucus
(Member), th
Tennessee Valley Authority Caucus
(Member), th
Pro-Life Caucus
(Member), th
Aerospace/Aviation Caucus
(Member), and th
Kentucky Nonprofit Caucus
(Member). Westerfield is a lifelong resident of

Christian County, Kentucky Christian County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 72,748. Its county seat is Hopkinsville. The county was formed in 1797. Christian County is part of the Clarksville, TN–KY Metropo ...

, and presently maintains a private law practice in after serving over five years as an Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney. He also operates a commercial drone photography/videography company, known as Flightdubs, LLC (www.flightdubs.com) serving clients across the Commonwealth and Tennessee.

References

External links

Senate District 3: Senator Whitney Westerfield (R)
at

Kentucky Legislature The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets annually in t ...

WhitneyWesterfield.com (campaign site)

Whitney H. Westerfield
at

Project Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected officials in si ...

Whitney Westerfield
at

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

Whitney H. Westerfield
at the National Institute on Money in State Politics {{DEFAULTSORT:Westerfield, Whitney 1980 births Baptists from Kentucky Living people Republican Party Kentucky state senators People from Hopkinsville, Kentucky Place of birth missing (living people) Southern Illinois University School of Law alumni University of Kentucky alumni 21st-century American politicians