Kentucky is electing more than just governor in 2023. Meet the down-ballot candidates
With more than a dozen candidates running to be Kentucky’s next governor, it’d be easy to forget there are several other races on the ballot in 2023.
Kentuckians will also elect their other constitutional officers : attorney general, treasurer, auditor, secretary of state and agriculture commissioner.
These down-ballot races may not garner the same level of attention Gov. Andy Beshear’s — the Kentucky Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for the commonwealth’s highest office — effort to secure a second term against a yet-to-be determined Republican challenger, but these offices can act a springboard for future gubernatorial hopefuls.
Indeed, three of the Republican candidates for governor are current constitutional officers: Attorney General Daniel Cameron, Commissioner of Agriculture Ryan Quarles and Auditor Mike Harmon.
Here’s a complete list of everyone running for these key offices. The primaries are May 16 and the general election is Nov. 7.
Attorney General
The attorney general is Kentucky’s chief law enforcement officer. Cameron, the incumbent, is not seeking a second term in office, instead opting to run for governor.
Seeking to replace him are:
Russell Coleman, a Republican, is the former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky in Louisville from 2017 to 2021. An appointee of former President Donald Trump, Coleman has campaigned on the promise to “Make America Safe Again.” Coleman was born and raised in Western Kentucky and worked as a special agent for the FBI, served as legal counsel to U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and worked at the Louisville law firm Frost Brown Todd, where he is again in private practice. His campaign website touts him as a “pro-life, pro-gun, pro-freedom” conservative.
State Rep. Pam Stevenson, a Louisville Democrat, has served in the Kentucky House of Representatives since 2021. A retired Air Force colonel, Stevenson has pointed to her experience as an attorney at the federal level, having served as a chief prosecutor, criminal defense attorney and an “operations law expert supporting aircrews with over 1,000 sorties over Iraq.” She has also a background as a non-profit leader and a Baptist minister.
Treasurer
The treasurer is Kentucky’s chief financial officer. The commonwealth’s current treasurer, Allison Ball, is term-limited after having served eight years in office.
Running to succeed Ball is:
OJ Oleka is a Frankfort native who worked as a deputy treasurer under Ball for three years. Oleka received his undergraduate degree from the University of Louisville and went on to earn his master’s and doctoral degrees from Bellarmine University. He later became President of the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities. The son of Nigerian immigrants, Oleka says he is running so that “every family has access to opportunity and prosperity” in Kentucky.
Andrew Cooperrider rose to prominence when he defied COVID-19 restrictions on his Lexington coffee shop. Since then, he ran against state Sen. Donald Douglas, R-Nicholasville, in a heated 2022 primary. Cooperrider is affiliated with the ‘Liberty’ wing of the Republican party and campaigned for the state Senate on the platform of making government smaller and spending as little money as possible.
Mark Metcalf is a Republican from Lancaster. He is the six-term Garrard County attorney. Metcalf holds the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army reserve after serving as a judge-advocate in Iraq and at other assignments. Metcalf said he wants state government to be smaller overall; focused on law enforcement and reducing its debts, such as the unfunded pension liabilities; and invested only in “Kentucky first” values, which rules out institutions that in any way hinder gun sales or the coal industry.
Michael Bowman, a Democrat, also ran for treasurer in 2019 against Ball. He is formerly a special assistant in the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet and a former banker. According to his website, Bowman is a sixth-generation Kentuckian and a graduate of the University of Louisville. Increasingly transparency and accountability in state government and advocating for innovative policy solutions are among his priorities, if elected.
Secretary of State
The Secretary of State is Kentucky’s chief elections official and chair of the State Board of Elections. Kentucky businesses must also register with the secretary’s office.
The candidates for secretary of state are:
Michael Adams is the current secretary of state and is seeking a second term in office. Adams has advocated for a number of election reforms while in office, including the creation of no-excuse early voting, and has fought misinformation about election integrity from within his own party — both of which have given him an across-the-aisle appeal. He often says his goal is to make it “easy to vote and hard to cheat.”
Stephen Knipper, a Northern Kentucky Republican, has run for Secretary of State twice before, in 2015 and 2019. Knipper most recently lost his re-election bid for Erlanger City Council in November. Knipper and State Sen. Adrienne Southworth, R-Lawrenceburg, were co-hosts of the “Restore Election Integrity” tour, which falsely claims that there is widespread voter fraud. Southworth accompanied Knipper to his filing for office; both are frequently at odds with Adams, who regularly denounces their false allegations of election fraud.
Allen Maricle, a resident of Bullitt County, was a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives in the 1990s for three terms. Maricle has endorsed Trump’s bid for the White House in 2024, and has accused McConnell of “meddling” in the secretary of state’s race to see Adams re-elected. Maricle has suggested that pandemic-era voting changes were “possibly in violation of state law” and has called for the end of ballot drop-boxes.
Buddy Wheatley is a Northern Kentucky Democrat who was just defeated in the 2022 general election for his seat in the House of Representatives. Wheatley is a labor attorney who used to serve as Covington’s fire chief. He was first elected to the House in 2018, and was one of only a couple elected Northern Kentucky Democrats.
Auditor
The auditor of public accounts — often simply referred to as the ‘auditor’ — is responsible for auditing all state agencies and county governments.
Harmon, the incumbent, served two terms in that role and is now running for governor.
The auditor candidates are:
Allison Ball, a Republican, is now running for auditor after serving two terms as treasurer. A Floyd County native and University of Kentucky law graduate, Ball has practiced bankruptcy law and also worked as a an assistant county attorney. In 2018, Ball became the first constitutional officer in Kentucky history to give birth while holding elected office. She has raised more than $50,000 for her campaign.
Derek Petteys, a Republican, is a resident of Fayette County. He previously challenged U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, R-KY06, in the 2022 primary. His campaign website denounces kids being “indoctrinated instead of educated,” and promises to be a watchdog over “wasteful” school spending in addition to exposing “the influence and corruption that is enriching many of our elected officials.”
Kimberley Reeder, a Democrat, is a tax attorney who has also worked as an educator, according to her website. A resident of Frankfort, Reeder grew up in Rowan County in Eastern Kentucky. Reeder’s website says her “personal experience growing up poor has given her a unique perspective on the challenges facing many Kentuckians today.”
Commissioner of Agriculture
The commissioner of agriculture is the head of the Department of Agriculture, which aims to promote the interests of agriculture and horticulture in Kentucky.
Ryan Quarles, a Republican, has served two terms as the agriculture commissioner and is now running for governor.
The candidates for this office are:
Jonathan Shell, a Republican, was once House GOP Floor Leader and has served as McConnell’s campaign chairman. He is a fifth-generation farmer from Garrard County. He has raised nearly $500,000 for his campaign.
State Rep. Richard Heath, R-Mayfield, narrowly lost to Quarles in the 2015 GOP primary for agriculture commissioner. He has been a state representative for a decade and is the current chair of the House Agriculture Committee. He has raised more than $212,000 to support his campaign.
Sierra Enlow is a Democrat from Hodgenville. According to her website, Enlow grew up “on a multi-generation family farm in LaRue County and attended the University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture.” She now works as an economic development consultant.
Mikael Malone is a Democrat from Winchester. He does not seem to have a campaign website, but his campaign Facebook page prominently features imagery of marijuana.
This story was originally published December 6, 2022 at 11:39 AM.
