With his dad at his side, Beshear makes final push for votes in Kentucky governor race

Democratic nominee for governor Andy Beshear made his final campaign sweep through Western Kentucky on Tuesday with his father, former Gov. Steve Beshear, cheering him on to enthusiastic crowds.

Kentucky has never had a father and son hold the office of governor. The Beshears hope to be the first.

Andy Beshear, on a bus tour with other statewide Democratic candidates, urged voters in Western Kentucky Monday to side with him over Gov. Matt Bevin. The Kentucky attorney general made his pitch in Paducah, Murray, Hopkinsville, Greenville, Franklin and Bowling Green. An appreciation dinner for volunteers was on tap for Monday evening.

At the Palace Theatre in Greenville Monday afternoon, Andy Beshear, who has been on the campaign trail for 17 months to become the 59th person to be Kentucky governor, said that Tuesday’s election is not a referendum on President Trump, who rallied with Bevin in Lexington Monday night. The president has remained popular in the state as Bevin’s popularity has declined.

Beshear, in a hoarse voice, said Tuesday’s election is a referendum on “the future of families in Kentucky, the future of public education, the future of health care. So much is on the line.”

He was asked during a brief news conference in Greenville if he would rather be campaigning the day before the election with President Trump or former Gov. Beshear.

“Steve Beshear is my dad,” Beshear said with a smile. “We are traveling the state. We are traveling with Kentuckians. I’m standing here with teachers. I’m standing with union members. I will stand with these families every day.

“Matt Bevin has a disastrous record of tearing people away from their health care, of attacking teachers. With that disastrous record, he has to hide behind someone else.”

Steve Beshear, who was governor from 2007 to 2015, asked the Greenville gathering if they were ready to elect his son governor “and send Matt Bevin back to New Hampshire.” Bevin was born in Denver, Colo., and raised in Shelburne, N.H.

The former governor noted that he “was raised about 30 miles down the road in Dawson Springs and he was raised with the values of faith, family and hard work.”

He said his son represents those values and will exhibit them as governor.

Also campaigning with Andy Beshear was state House Democratic leader Rocky Adkins of Sandy Hook, who lost to Beshear in last May’s Democratic primary election for governor.

Adkins urged the crowd “to do everything you can to get out the vote for Andy Beshear.”

Muhlenberg County has more registered Democrats than Republicans — 15,050 to 6,491 — but the coal-producing county went for Bevin in 2015 over Democrat Jack Conway 3,613 to 3,453. Bevin beat Conway by about 9 percentage points statewide — 52.5 percent to 43.8 percent. Independent Drew Curtis amassed about 3.6 percent of the vote that year.

Elizabeth Long and Rhonda Wood, retired teachers in Muhlenberg County, said a grant from the National Education Association’s retired teachers group enabled them to rent a room at a local motel to use as center for phone banks to get out the vote for Beshear.

Wood said they also have mailed more than 1,300 postcards to independents and other party voters in the area.

“We don’t want to wake up Wednesday morning and be kicking ourselves for not doing enough. I really do think turnout is going to go our way,” said Wood.

Steve Earle, with United Mine Workers of America, said union members have been knocking on doors in the area for Beshear.

Beshear reported that his campaign has knocked on at least 1 million doors in the state.

This story was originally published November 4, 2019 at 5:33 PM.