Is Daniel Cameron running for Senate? Former KY AG says he ‘would be honored to serve’
Fresh off the news that Rep. Andy Barr is eyeing a run for the seat currently held by Sen. Mitch McConnell, Kentucky’s former attorney general — once hailed as a “star” by President Donald Trump — told the Herald-Leader Monday night that he’s looking forward to serving in the U.S. Senate.
However, Daniel Cameron stopped just shy of confirming a senate bid in 2026.
“I would be honored to serve in the United States Senate. Kentucky needs a Senator who will help President Trump advance his America First Agenda,” Cameron wrote in a statement to the Herald-Leader. “I’ve never wavered in my support. In January 2023, a year before a vote was cast in Iowa, I was the first elected leader in Kentucky to endorse President Trump. I never considered anyone else.
“I’ll take that same commitment and focus to Washington on behalf of the men, women, and children of our 120 counties,” he continued, harking back to an oft-repeated line from a previous run for office.
Cameron’s statement turns up the heat on an already hot race, even with the primary more than a year away.
His comments came on the same day that Central Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District Rep. Andy Barr was reported to have told people in Kentucky and elsewhere that he would run for longtime Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell’s seat if the 82-year-old decides not to run again in 2026.
McConnell and his team have not said if he will seek reelection, though an aide told the Herald-Leader last March that he would not. Several widely publicized health issues have raised doubts about McConnell among Republican insiders.
Also potentially in the fray is Nate Morris, a Kentucky businessman who founded a software company focused on the waste industry.
Morris recently lashed out against McConnell for the senator’s vote against one of Trump’s nominees, fueling speculation that he could mount a bid for the office before McConnell made a decision one way or the other.
A spokesperson for Morris did not offer comment to the Herald-Leader regarding the 44-year-old’s thinking; however, he has said publicly he’s weighing a run for senate in 2026 and governor in 2027.
Cameron, 39, was the Republican candidate for Kentucky governor in 2023, emerging on top in a 12-way primary. He easily beat out other high-profile Republicans in the state, including Ryan Quarles, the commissioner of agriculture, and Kelly Craft, a former ambassador in the Trump administration.
Cameron was defeated by incumbent Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear by five percentage points in the general election despite strong backing by Trump, who won the state in a blowout 2024 victory.
While Barr, 51, ate up the initial round of headlines on Monday for reporting on his statements, Cameron made some important moves as well.
For one, he got a new job in addition to leading the anti-diversity, equity and inclusion 1792 Exchange.
Cameron will join the New York and Houston-based litigation and consulting Oberheiden P.C., a firm whose ranks include several former Republican heavy hitters like ex-secretary of state Mike Pompeo and former House speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Since the 1792 Exchange is a nonprofit, a potential transition away from that role into the new job could free Cameron from stringent rules surrounding 501(c)(3) nonprofit leaders seeking office.
Also of interest is a poll provided to the Herald-Leader by two Republican sources showing favorable results for Cameron in a hypothetical match-up with other Kentucky Republicans who could seek the nomination.
Co/efficient, a GOP pollster co-founded by a former Cameron consultant, has a poll Monday showing Cameron with a 25-point lead over Barr and even bigger cushions against former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft and Morris.
In a four-candidate match-up with Cameron, Barr, Craft and Morris, the poll shows Cameron with 37% support, Barr with 12%, Craft at 6% and Morris at 1%. Eight percent of respondents answered “other,” and the remainder were undecided.
A version of the poll that included the same candidates with 4th Congressional District Rep. Thomas Massie saw Cameron’s lead shrink, as he garnered 32% to Massie’s 16%.
Spokespeople for Massie and Craft have not responded to a Herald-Leader inquiry on whether or not they are consider running for senate.
The poll was conducted with 1,298 likely GOP primary voters on Dec. 2-3, 2024. The margin of error is 3.14%.
Co/efficient has a relatively low ranking from 538, a popular elections analysis website.
The poll also found that Cameron has 96% name ID among surveyed Republicans and registered a 56% favorability rating compared to 11% who had an unfavorable opinion. The pollster concluded that Cameron is “well-positioned to be the next U.S. Senator from Kentucky if a vacancy occurs.”
Editor’s Note: An initial version of this story indicated that Cameron would leave his role at 1792 Exchange for a job at Oberheiden P.C., the national law and consulting firm. Cameron was hired by Oberheiden P.C. but has not left his job as CEO of the 1792 Exchange.
This story was originally published February 11, 2025 at 4:30 AM.
