Central Kentucky Democrats pick Josh Hicks to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Andy Barr

On Nov. 3, U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, R-Lexington, will face Democratic challenger Josh Hicks, a Lexington lawyer, U.S. Marine Corps veteran and former Maysville police officer.

Democrats chose Hicks over Daniel Kemph of Lexington in the June 23 primary. Barr, first elected to Congress in 2012, easily won the GOP nomination despite challenges from Chuck Eddy and Geoff Young, both of Lexington.

The 6th Congressional District includes most of Central Kentucky.

“To everyone who has made your voice heard, whether by volunteering on our campaign, whether you voted by mail or in person, whether you are in Lexington or Fleming County — thank you,” Hicks said Tuesday in a prepared statement. “I hear you. I see you. I will represent you and every single person in our district. I can’t do this alone, but we can do this together.”

“We need to restore integrity to our democracy, and we need leaders who will take responsibility. We need to make Congress work for the people again. With your help, your support, and your voice, we are going to share that message far and wide and bring about important change this November,” Hicks said.

Hicks is campaigning as a working-class candidate with rural roots who cares about “real people problems.” Among his issues are lowering prescription drug prices by allowing Medicare to negotiate with drug companies; providing a public option for health insurance to make coverage available to all citizens; and making high-speed broadband available in rural communities.

Barr, a conservative and a lawyer by training, is gaining seniority as a member of the House Committee on Financial Services, which regulates banking, as well as the House Veterans Affairs Committee. He’s also serving on a new House Republican task force investigating China’s role in the COVID 19 pandemic.

Barr recently lost his wife, Eleanor Carol Leavell Barr. The Fayette County Coroner’s office said the preliminary autopsy identified the cause of death as mitral valve prolapse, or floppy valve syndrome. The couple have two young daughters.

This story was originally published June 30, 2020 at 5:29 PM.

John Cheves

Lexington Herald-Leader

(859) 334-0802

John Cheves is a government accountability reporter at the Lexington Herald-Leader. He joined the newspaper in 1997 and previously worked in its Washington and Frankfort bureaus and covered the courthouse beat. Support my work with a digital subscription