Looking for downballot races to watch on Election Day? Here are 4 to know
A lot of attention is being paid to Kentucky’s federal races in the May primary, including the battle to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell in the Senate and the fight for the GOP nomination in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, where President Donald Trump is trying to have Rep. Thomas Massie unseated by Ed Gallrein.
But Kentucky has several races farther down the ballot worth watching, with all 100 members in the state House and half of the state Senate up for grabs.
Here are four other races the Herald-Leader will be watching closely when the votes are counted on May 19.
Richard Heath eyes a comeback
There’s a familiar name on the state House District 2 ballot, which spans across Graves County and part of McCracken County in West Kentucky.
Richard Heath, who had previously served more than a decade in the House and was chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, is running to take his seat back after losing it in the 2024 primary election.
He’s facing incumbent Rep. Kim Holloway, who he previously lost to by four percentage points. Compared to Heath, Holloway’s platform resembles the “Liberty” movement in the state legislature, comprised of conservative politicians looking to push the GOP further right.
The Liberty wing in the General Assembly emphasizes individual freedoms, including medical and religious freedom, and stresses limited government regulations and spending.
Heath wasn’t the only one to lose to a Liberty-aligned candidate in 2024, as Thomas Jefferson had also beat incumbent Rep. Killian Timoney in the House District 45 Republican primary. Jefferson lost in the general to Democrat Adam Moore.
Timoney is also hoping to return to Frankfort by running again for House District 45. He was set to face Jeff Thompson in the Republican primary, but Thompson withdrew from the race in March.
According to reports from the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance, Holloway has around $15,700 cash on hand while Heath has $26,200.
State Senate District 14
It’s a crowded Republican primary for the open state Senate seat in bourbon country.
Sen. Jimmy Higdon, R-Lebanon, who currently represents the district, announced last year he would retire at the end of his term. Higdon has served in the Senate since 2009 and played a key role in the Republican Caucus, including chairing the Senate Transportation Committee and serving as the majority whip and president pro tempore.
His district encompasses LaRue, Marion, Nelson, Spencer and Washington counties.
The Republicans running in the race are: Brian Bayers, Stephen Carney, Ben Mudd, Dallas Robinson, Lynn Shelburne, Peggy Brady Smith and James Victery.
Robinson leads in fundraising with having around $67,800 cash on hand, according to a report from the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance. Mudd follows closely behind, with around $65,800 cash on hand.
Carrie Gribbins Truitt and Malcolm Jones are running for the Democratic nomination.
Teamsters Local Union No. 89 endorsed Truitt, and she has around $9,900 cash on hand, according to a report from the Kentucky Reigstry of Election Finance. Jones has around $745 cash on hand.
Ryan Dotson’s House seat
With state Rep. Ryan Dotson, R-Winchester, running to represent Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District, the seat for state House District 73 is open.
The district is located in Central Kentucky and includes Clark County and part of Fayette County.
Daniel Konstantopoulos, the current magistrate of Clark County Fiscal Court representing District 1, is running against former Clark County Judge-Executive Les Yates for the Republican nomination.
The Kentucky Right to Life Political Action Committee recently withdrew its recommendation to vote for Yates because he misrepresented the recommendation, according to reporting from the Winchester Sun. Konstantopoulos got an endorsement from Rep. Andy Barr, who is running for U.S. Senate.
Chelsea Kirk and Rory Houlihan are running for the Democratic nomination in the primary. They participated in a candidate forum last month, where the candidates discussed Medicaid cuts, affordable housing and the minimum wage, according to reporting from the Winchester Sun.
State Senate District 36
Two candidates are vying for the Democratic nomination to represent part of Jefferson County.
Luke Whitehead, a former University of Louisville basketball player, and Sarah Cole McIntosh, a former Jefferson County Board of Education member, will face each other in the Democratic primary for state Senate District 36.
Whoever wins will face incumbent Sen. Julie Raque Adams, R-Louisville, in the general election. She has represented the district since 2015. Adams has played a notable role in the Senate Republican Caucus, including previously serving as Majority Caucus Chair and currently chair of the Senate Licensing and Occupation Committee.
Raque Adams was the subject of an ethics complaint filed by Emily Brook Benningfield, the secretary of the Louisville Democratic Party, to the Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission last month. The complaint asked for the commission to investigate Raque Adams’ compensation from a nonprofit called Kentucky Strong Inc., a political organization she found and controls.
Benningfield cited a story cited a story from the Kentucky Lantern, which reported over roughly the same period Raque Adams received 12 payments amounting to around $85,000, the organization was funded by interests that lobby the Kentucky General Assembly. The complaint alleges Raque Adams violated the legislature’s code of ethics by using her position for personal gain, not avoiding conflicts of interest and alleging she filed a misleading financial disclosure report with the commission.
Raque Adams responded to the complaint, saying, “only in recent years, once it became sustainable and as our financial reports reflect, have I received modest compensation for serving as Executive Director,” according to reporting from WLKY.
The early steps of the ethics commission’s review of the complaint are confidential, and the commission has yet to make significant progress.
