Races to watch in the 2020 primary election for Kentucky House seats
A veteran Democratic incumbent who has run more than 20 times for the state House. Two House Republican leaders who have election opposition, including the speaker. A new state representative for Jessamine County and a deja vu race in Jefferson County.
These are some of the scenes in Kentucky House primary election races this month to pick party nominees for the Nov. 3 general election.
Of all 100 state House seats up for election this year, 29 have primary elections.
The primary election date is June 23 but Kentucky voters are being encouraged to vote by mailed-in absentee ballots because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s a look at some of the top House primary races.
Two House Republican leaders have primary challengers
House Speaker David Osborne of Prospect, who has been a member of the House since 2005 and is involved in farming and real estate, will face Tiffany Dunn of Crestwood, an activist for teachers, in the 59th District that covers Oldham County. The winner has no opposition in the November general election.
Osborne became speaker, the top post in the House, in January 2019.
Dunn is a co-founder of Save Our Schools KY, a group that encourages legislators to provide more money for public education and opposes charter schools, vouchers and scholarship tax credits.
In the 50th District in Nelson County, House Majority Whip Chad McCoy, an attorney who has been in the House since 2017, will try to preserve his seat in the GOP primary election against Don Thrasher of Coxs Creek, chairman of the Nelson County Republican Party.
In the race, McCoy is talking about what he has done for the district, mentioning helping its bourbon industry by being primary sponsor of a measure to allow Kentucky distilleries to ship their products directly to the homes of distillery visitors and improving roads.
Thrasher is vowing never to raise taxes and touting his highest rating by the National Rifle Association for advocating gun rights.
The winner faces Democrat Kory Miller of Boston, an engineer, in the fall’s general election. Miller lost a bid two years ago in the Democratic primary election for the district seat.
He’s 88 and running for reelection
Democrat Tom Burch, 88, is no stranger to elections. He’s been a member of the state House for 47 years, starting in 1972 and missing only one two-year term from 1976 to 1977. This year will mark his 24th bid for the state House.
Burch, who has been called Kentucky’s liberal dinosaur, is up for election again this month. His Democratic opponent in Jefferson County’s 30th District is Daniel Grossberg, a licensed Realtor who is a member of the Jefferson County Commission. He lost a bid for state treasurer in 2015. He is president of the Metro Democratic Club at age 41.
Burch says he has “built a legacy of championing legislation to improve the health, safety and welfare of women, seniors and the most vulnerable in our society.”
Grossberg’s campaign theme is “A new leader for our future.” “We need leadership who is engaged with the people of the district and there for them in Frankfort,” he says.
The winner of the Democratic primary will represent the district for the next two years. No Republican or candidate from any other party filed to run .
Jessamine County will get a new state representative
Democrat Russ Meyer of Nicholasville decided not to seek re-election this year to the 39th District, which includes the bulk of Jessamine and part of Fayette counties.
Two Republicans and one Democrat have filed for the seat. All are from Nicholasville.
In the GOP primary are Jay Corman, board chairman for RJC Railroad Group, which his late father R.J. Corman founded, and Matt Lockett, a financial advisor and chair of the Jessamine County Republican Party.
Corman, who calls himself a railroader, said on his campaign website that people know his work in the community. The company has 1,660 employees. Lockett said he has devoted his career “to helping families and businesses in our area have better and stronger futures, and as state representative I will continue to fight for these principles every day.”
The winner will go against Carolyn Dupont in the November general election. She is an educator at Eastern Kentucky University.
Three rank-and-file Republican incumbents draw tough primaries
R. Travis Brenda of Crab Orchard and Les Yates of Winchester are freshmen legislators seeking re-election, and Ken Upchurch of Monticello is looking for another two-year term to add to his lengthy resume in the House. He has served in the chamber from 1995 to 2010 and 2013 to the present.
All three Republicans have to survive this month’s primary to continue their law-making roles.
In the 71st District that includes Garrard, Rockcastle and parts of Madison counties, Brenda, a teacher, narrowly defeated then-House Majority Leader Jonathan Shell in 2018 to represent the district. Shell, a farmer, is campaign chair for U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s re-election effort.
In the GOP primary, Brenda is running against R. Josh Bray, Mount Vernon’s city administrator.
Shell said he is “not doing anything” in the House race between Brenda and Bray. “I have deliberately stayed out of that race,” he said.
“Neither Mr. Bray nor Mr. Brenda need me to prop them up or tear them down,” he said. “They can both stand on their own.”
Yates, in the 73rd District that includes Clark and Madison counties, owns Boonesboro Supply in Winchester. His GOP opponent is Ryan Dotson of Winchester. Dotson leads Ryan Dotson Ministries and is a board member of the Clark County Industrial Authority.
The winner will go up against either Kenny Blair or Rory Houlihan, candidates in the Democratic primary. Both are from Winchester. Blair is a combat veteran who ran unsuccessfully for the office in the 2016 Democratic primary. Houlihan ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2016.
In the 52nd District that includes Wayne, McCreary and Pulaski counties, Upchurch, an insurance agent, faces attorney Rhett Ramsey of Monticello in the GOP primary. No Democrat or candidate of any other party entered the race.
Central Kentucky race attracts two Democrats and one Republican
Rep. Joe Graviss, D-Versailles, is leaving the House after one term to run for the state Senate. The open seat in the 56th District features two Democrats in the primary and one Republican waiting for the winner in November’s general election.
The district covers Woodford and parts of Franklin and Fayette counties.
The Democratic candidates are involved in education. Lamar Allen of Lexington is a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math ) educator at Yates Elementary and Bob Gibson of Versailles is chief information officer and technology director for Woodford County schools. The Republican candidate is Dan Fister of Versailles. He is a farmer, property manager and retired general contractor.
Contested GOP primary to replace veteran Jeff Hoover
After serving in the House since 1997, Republican Jeff Hoover of Russell Springs, an attorney, did not seek re-election this year.
Two candidates vying to replace him from the 83rd District that includes Clinton, Cumberland, Russell and Pulaski counties are R. Josh Branscum of Russell Springs and Mark Polston of Somerset. There is no opposition in the November general election.
Branscum is executive vice president of Branscum Construction Co. He was chair of the Kentucky State Board of Elections in 2018. His family has been major contributors to the Republican Party. Polston is a flooring retailer, an ordained Baptist minister and a former state deputy attorney general.
It’s deja vu in Jefferson County race
Two years ago, Dennis Horlander, a Democrat who had been a member of the state House since 1996, lost his Democratic House primary election to challenger Nima Kulkarni.
Kulkarni, a lawyer, got 47 percent of the vote in Jefferson County’s 40th District to Horlander’s 25 percent. Horlander claims a surgery curtailed his campaigning that year.
It’s a repeat in this month’s primary election.
The winner has no opponent in the fall.
This story was originally published June 18, 2020 at 11:12 AM.
