2015 Kentucky elections

A general election was held in the U.S. state of Kentucky on November 3, 2015. All of Kentucky's executive officers were up for election. Primary elections were held on May 19, 2015.

Governor and Lieutenant Governor
Incumbent Democratic Governor Steve Beshear was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office.

In Kentucky, gubernatorial candidates pick their own running mates and they are elected on shared tickets in both the primary and general elections.

The candidates for the Democratic nomination were Attorney General of Kentucky Jack Conway and his running mate State Representative Sannie Overly; and retired engineer and 2014 Congressional candidate Geoff Young and his running mate Jonathan Masters. Conway and Overly easily defeated Young and Masters in the primary election for the Democratic Party nomination.

For the Republicans, businessman and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2014 Matt Bevin ran on a ticket with Tea Party activist and 2014 State House candidate Jenean Hampton; Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky James Comer ran on a ticket with State Senator Christian McDaniel; former Louisville Metro Councilman and nominee for Mayor of Louisville in 2010 Hal Heiner ran on a ticket with former Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman and nominee for Kentucky State Treasurer in 2011 K.C. Crosbie; and former Associate Justice of the Kentucky Supreme Court Will T. Scott ran on a ticket with former Menifee County Sheriff Rodney Coffey. Bevin held an 83-vote lead over Comer in the primary election, with both Heiner and Scott conceding. The Associated Press, referring to the race between Bevin and Comer a "virtual tie", did not call the race in favor of either candidate. In addition, Comer refused to concede and stated that he would ask for a recanvass. The request for recanvass was filed with the Kentucky Secretary of State's office on May 20, 2015, with Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes ordering the recanvass to occur at 9:00 a.m. local time on May 28, 2015. Upon completion of the recanvass, Grimes announced that Bevin remained 83 votes ahead of Comer. Grimes also stated that should Comer want a full recount, it would require a court order from the Franklin Circuit Court. On May 29, Comer announced he would not request a recount and conceded the nomination to Bevin.

Attorney general
Incumbent Democratic attorney general Jack Conway was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office. He instead ran for governor.

The candidate that would go on to be elected Attorney General was Andy Beshear, the son of retiring governor Steve Beshear.

In 2016, Steve Beshear's former personal cabinet secretary, Tim Longmeyer, was marred in controversy when he was exposed on bribery charges, including redirecting $6,000 of kickbacks into Andy Beshear's Attorney General campaign. Andy Beshear had recently hired Longmeyer as a deputy. However, the prosecutors in Longmeyer's case indicated that there is no evidence to support that Andy Beshear knew what Longmeyer was doing.

Over the next three years, Republican Governor Matt Bevin spearheaded an investigation into former governor Steve Beshear's administration as well as Andy Beshear's Attorney General campaign. Spending approximately $550,000 leading up to the 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election, the investigation led to no conclusive results regarding the culpability of Steve or Andy Beshear.

Beshear defeated Republican Whitney Westerfield by a margin of 0.2 percent, getting 50.1% of the vote to Westerfield's 49.9%. The margin was approximately 2,000 votes.

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Andy Beshear, attorney and son of Governor Steve Beshear


 * Declined
 * Alison Lundergan Grimes, Secretary of State of Kentucky and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2014 (running for re-election)
 * Jennifer Moore, former Chairwoman of the Kentucky Democratic Party
 * John Tilley, state representative

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Michael T. Hogan, Lawrence County Attorney
 * Whitney Westerfield, state senator


 * Declined
 * Luke Morgan, attorney
 * Mark Wohlander, attorney

Secretary of State
Incumbent Democratic Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes was eligible to run for re-election to a second term in office. She had considered running for Governor of Kentucky or for Attorney General of Kentucky. She decided to seek re-election.

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Charles Lovett, candidate for Jefferson County Justice of the Peace in 2010
 * Alison Lundergan Grimes, incumbent Secretary of State and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2014


 * Declined
 * Colmon Elridge, aide to Governor Steve Beshear and former Executive Vice President of Young Democrats of America
 * David O'Neill, Fayette County Property Valuation Administrator

Results
[[File:2015 Kentucky Secretary of State democratic primary.svg|thumb|250px|Primary results by county: {{legend|#8db8e2|Lundergan Grimes}}

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Candidates

 * Declared
 * Steve Knipper, former Erlanger City Councilman


 * Withdrew
 * Michael Pitzer, candidate for the State House in 2008


 * Declined
 * Michael Adams, attorney and general counsel for the Republican Governors Association
 * Matt Bevin, businessman and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2014 (ran for Governor)
 * Ken Fleming, former Louisville Metro Council member
 * Damon Thayer, Majority Leader of the Kentucky Senate

State auditor
Incumbent Democratic state auditor Adam Edelen had considered running for governor in 2015, even lining up a running mate, but ultimately declined to do so. He instead ran for re-election to a second term in office.

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Adam Edelen, incumbent State Auditor


 * Declined
 * Chris Tobe, CFA, writer, former trustee of the Kentucky Retirement Systems and former staffer to State Auditor Ed Hatchett

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Mike Harmon, State Representative and candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky in 2011


 * Declined
 * Damon Thayer, Majority Leader of the Kentucky Senate

State Treasurer
Incumbent Democratic State Treasurer Todd Hollenbach was term-limited and could not run for re-election to a third term in office. He had said that he may run for another office in 2015, but did not specify which, and eventually declined to run for another statewide office. He instead successfully ran for an open seat on the Jefferson County District Court, defeating 20 other candidates.

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Neville Blakemore, Executive Chairman of Great Northern Building Products and nominee for Louisville Metro Council in 2006
 * Jim Glenn, State Representative and candidate for State Auditor in 2003
 * Daniel Grossberg, Jefferson County Commissioner and President of the Louisville Young Democrats
 * Richard Henderson, former State Representative and former Mayor of Jeffersonville
 * Rick Nelson, state representative


 * Declined
 * Colmon Elridge, aide to Governor Steve Beshear and former Executive Vice President of Young Democrats of America
 * Dee Dee Ford-Keene, businesswoman and former President of the Democratic Women's Club of Kentucky
 * Chris Tobe, CFA, writer, former trustee of the Kentucky Retirement Systems and former staffer to State Auditor Ed Hatchett

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Allison Ball, attorney
 * Kenny Imes, state representative
 * Jon Larson, former Fayette County Judge/Executive, candidate for Attorney General in 2007 and nominee for Kentucky's 6th congressional district in 2008

Agriculture Commissioner
Incumbent Republican Agriculture Commissioner James Comer did not run for re-election to a second term in office. He instead ran for governor, and was defeated by Matt Bevin in the Republican primary.

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Jean-Marie Lawson Spann, businesswoman, radio host and agriculture activist


 * Declined
 * Dennis Parrett, state senator

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Richard Heath, state representative
 * Ryan Quarles, state representative


 * Declined
 * James Comer, incumbent Agriculture Commissioner
 * Paul Hornback, state senator
 * Damon Thayer, Majority Leader of the Kentucky Senate

District 7
[[File:2015 Kentucky Supreme Court 7th district special election results map by county.svg|thumb|200px|Results by county: {{legend|#d79346|Wright}}

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{{legend|#81d0d0|50–60%}} ]] A non-partisan special election was held along with the May 19, 2015 primary elections to fill the 7th district seat of the Kentucky Supreme Court. The seat was vacated when Justice Will T. Scott resigned to run for governor. The winner of the election was elected to serve the remainder of Scott's term, with the seat coming up for re-election next in 2020.

Candidates

 * Declared
 * Janet Stumbo, Kentucky Court of Appeals Judge and former Kentucky Supreme Court Justice
 * Sam Wright, Kentucky Circuit Court Judge


 * Withdrew
 * John Lewis, Elliott County Attorney