With ‘Comer for governor’ buzzing, he thinks he knows which KY Democrat he’d face
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Comer draws strong GOP support for a 2027 governor run at Fancy Farm event.
- Lt. Gov. Coleman and Rocky Adkins emerge as likely Democratic contenders.
- Secretary of State Michael Adams and Rep. Massie weigh possible GOP bids.
In West Kentucky, it’s no longer speculation; it’s an assumption: Rep. James Comer is planning to run for governor in 2027.
That prospect lit up Republicans gathered at a breakfast event before the famous Fancy Farm political speaking on Saturday. Commissioner of Agriculture Jonathan Shell riled the crowd of about 200 into a standing ovation while he chanted “run Comer, run” during his speech.
“It’s gonna happen. It’s the most solid bet you can make in this state. There’s nothing more sure in politics,” Shell yelled from the podium over their cheers.
Treasurer Mark Metcalf agreed on stage, scoring the loudest applause of his speech when he said “and yes: Jamie Comer for governor.”
It was something of a natural setting for a pro-Comer message. The congressman has represented the 1st Congressional District since 2016 and won the region in his 83-vote loss to former governor Matt Bevin in the 2015 GOP gubernatorial primary.
Comer’s flirtation with the governor’s mansion next cycle has been clear since at least election night 2024, after he earned his most recent term in Congress, if not earlier.
Shell told the Herald-Leader after Fancy Farm that any Republican would be “silly” to run against Comer.
“We have been waiting for generations to have a candidate like Jamie Comer is going to be for governor — if he decides to do so. Someone who has the capability of raising the money, somebody who has a national platform to be able to get the message out and someone who has the right message of limited government and of individual rights,” Shell said.
“You don’t get to be what he is in D.C. without being a special talent, and that’s what we’re dealing with: Jamie Comer is a special talent.”
So, is Comer really a shoo-in for the GOP nomination in 2027?
Secretary of State Michael Adams, a self-described moderate who received the highest vote total of any statewide officer in the 2023 election, has said he’s considering running. Adams and Beshear are the only two term-limited statewide constitutional officers.
“I haven’t made a final decision but am actively exploring and receiving constant encouragement,” Adams told the Herald-Leader in a statement.
In the wake of Cameron’s 2023 loss, Adams offered a diagnosis of Republicans’ problem in off-year elections: They focus too much on controversial social topics, like transgender issues.
“We want to grow and improve our quality of living, and I think we do a lot of harm to that mission when we become a place people don’t want to move to,” Adams said at the time.
Fourth Congressional District Rep. Thomas Massie is another name sometimes mentioned in the discussion for the GOP nomination. Massie’s star has risen as the top Republican in Washington pushing back against President Donald Trump’s agenda on foreign affairs and the investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“I would consider running for governor,” Massie told the Herald-Leader in late June.
While the exposure has lifted Massie’s name ID across the nation, and likely in Kentucky, Trump is still seen as the dominant force in GOP politics, particularly in a state he won by more than 30 points last year.
The Democrats, according to the Republicans
Comer’s speech to Republicans on Saturday morning paid less attention to his own 2027 future and more to who he believes the Democrats will pick: Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman.
Referring to her as “Jackie” on stage, Comer said she was “so irrelevant” that if you put her in a photo with University of Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope and famous Louisville boxer Muhammad Ali and asked the average Kentuckian which was Coleman, they still wouldn’t identify her.
A notable name not mentioned in the discussion of who would Democrats nominate in 2027 was Rocky Adkins. The longtime House leader turned senior adviser to Beshear put up a strong second-place challenge to the governor in the 2019 primary and is regularly discussed as eyeing higher office, be it Senate or governor.
Comer explained his thinking after the speeches Saturday.
“At the end of the day, Rocky voted, when he represented a rural area, pro-life. He voted against gun control. He had a very conservative voting record,” Comer said. “I don’t think you can get very far in Louisville and Lexington in the Democratic primary with a voting record like that, and I think he knows that.”
It’s true that Adkins was largely against gun control and voted for the “trigger” ban on abortion that ended up becoming the law of the land after the Supreme Court of the United States. That issue was used against him in the 2019 primary.
Shell told the Herald-Leader on Saturday that he could see those positions being used effectively against him in a television ad.
Adkins sees their commentary as a tell, spokesperson Emily Ferguson told the Herald-Leader.
“I didn’t realize Jamie Comer and Jonathan Shell were moonlighting as Democratic strategists. This seems like less an analysis of the field and more of an indication of who they’re worried might win,” Ferguson said.
Coleman, for her part, declined to speak on the Fancy Farm stage but did address Democrats at the Marshall County Democratic Party’s annual bean dinner.
The lieutenant governor made her own allusions to the future there, saying there are “races in 2027 that might bring me back to the Fancy Farm stage.”
Other 2027 posts
Metcalf, Shell and Attorney General Russell Coleman have all committed to running again for their posts.
Auditor Allison Ball has also said she intends to run for reelection, though her name has been floated for the Eastern Kentucky-based 5th Congressional District should Rep. Hal Rogers, the oldest voting member of Congress, leave his post.
Aside from governor, that only leaves an opening at Secretary of State, where Adams is term-limited out from seeking reelection.
One possible GOP answer was also present at Fancy Farm. Mike Harmon, a former state auditor who came in a distant fifth place in the 2023 governor’s primary, was present at all the big events in West Kentucky.
Harmon, who now works for the social conservative group Commonwealth Policy Center, said he’s considered running for Secretary of State.
“We’ve still got plenty of time to think about it. Secretary of State, would be one that would probably be a good fit because I actually served 13 years on the (House) Elections, Constitutional Amendments and Intergovernmental Affairs Committee,” Harmon said.
This story was originally published August 4, 2025 at 10:26 AM.
