Gov. Beshear’s Victory in Kentucky was Achieved in Trump Country

Democrat Gov. Andy Beshear won re-election to Kentucky’s highest office Tuesday by building on the path to victory he created in his successful 2019 campaign.

That year, Beshear narrowly defeated Republican incumbent Matt Bevin, with a margin of just over 5,000 votes. He achieved this by securing large margins in Democrat strongholds, winning or nearly winning in several Republican-leaning areas, and minimizing losses in traditionally Republican areas.

In the 2023 election, Beshear appears to have carried 29 of Kentucky’s 120 counties, almost all of which were counties that Donald Trump carried in the 2020 presidential election. This is an improvement from the 23 counties he won in 2019.

Beshear was the preferred choice of voters who cast their ballots before Election Day, winning about 62% of those votes. Additionally, he held Republican nominee Daniel Cameron to a small lead in votes cast on Election Day. Beshear also saw high levels of support in Democrat-heavy counties such as Fayette and Jefferson.

Beshear’s victory was also attributed to his performance in seven swing counties that Trump won in 2020 with less than 60% of the vote. Beshear carried six of these seven counties, improving his performance from 2019. He also performed well in traditionally Republican areas, winning more counties than previous Democratic candidates in those regions.

Although Beshear lost 91 of the state’s 120 counties, he received a higher percentage of the vote in those areas compared to 2019, and significantly higher than the percentage President Joe Biden received in 2020.

Overall, Beshear’s victory in the 2023 election showed his ability to appeal to a significant portion of the state, building on the foundation established by his father’s previous successful campaigns for governor.