Former Republican House leader will be Kentucky’s next Commissioner of Agriculture
A familiar face around Frankfort will be Kentucky’s new Commissioner of Agriculture.
Jonathan Shell, the first Republican to ever lead a state House majority, will be the Commonwealth’s next agricultural commissioner. The office is responsible for expanding and promoting the state’s agricultural markets. In Tuesday’s election Shell defeated Democratic nominee Sierra Enlow.
“I’m so honored by the trust placed in me by the people of Kentucky to be the next Commissioner of Agriculture,” Shell said in a statement Tuesday. “I’ll work every day to support Kentucky’s farmers, protect our rural communities and defend our way of life. Brooke and I are grateful to everyone who supported our campaign and worked tirelessly to build a better Commonwealth for our families and our children.”
The Associated Press called the race Tuesday night while Shell had a healthy lead with returns incomplete.
Shell, 35, will succeed current commissioner Ryan Quarles, who reached his term limit. The office has been in existence since 1876 and Shell will be the 40th commissioner.
“Promoting the interests of Kentucky agriculture across the state, nation, and world, and advocating for Kentucky’s 76,000 farm families is an awesome responsibility,” Quarles said in statement. “I congratulate Jonathan on his victory and I look forward to working with him in a smooth transition as he takes office on Jan. 1, and wish him the very best.”
A fifth-generation farmer from Garrard County, Shell focused his campaign on attacking Democrats and “out-of-touch” Washington bureaucrats, arguing often that a vote for him would be a strike against the agenda of President Joe Biden, a Democrat.
“I think federal overreach is one of the biggest challenges facing farmers, and I intend to be a strong voice against it,” Shell told the Herald-Leader in a questionnaire in October.
He’s no political stranger. Shell was previously elected to the Kentucky House in 2012 and was regarded as a rising star among the party. After helping spearhead the GOP’s candidate recruitment efforts, he became the first Republican House majority leader in 2017 but lost his primary the following year.
Shell went on to run U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell’s 2020 re-election campaign before announcing his agricultural commissioner candidacy in 2021. In May’s Republican primary, Shell defeated state Rep. Richard Heath, the chair of the House Agricultural Committee.
Outside of the political sphere, Shell has worked on his family’s farm, Shell Farms and Greenhouses in Garrard County.
Shell’s victory is a continuation of a decades-long GOP hold on the agricultural commissioner’s office. A Democrat hasn’t held the office since 2003 when Billy Ray Smith finished his second term as commissioner.
His opponent, Enlow, grew up on a farm in LaRue County. Had she won, the Louisville-based University of Kentucky graduate would have been the first woman to hold the office.
This story was originally published November 7, 2023 at 9:03 PM.