Kentucky 2015 Election Results

Kentucky held its general election on November 3, 2015, deciding 7 statewide offices led by the governorship.

Highlights

• Republicans took the governorship plus the auditor's and treasurer's offices. Counting the governor's ticket as one office, they now held four of the six statewide offices, up from one. With Democrats still running the House and Republicans the Senate, government stayed divided.
• Matt Bevin (R), who had never held elective office and lost a 2014 primary challenge to Mitch McConnell, won the May primary by 83 votes over Agriculture Commissioner James Comer (R). He then beat Attorney General Jack Conway (D) by about 9 points after trailing in polls throughout the race. On the state's Medicaid expansion, Bevin moved from suggesting repeal to saying he would just scale it back. He also emphasized his support for Kim Davis, the Rowan County clerk jailed over same-sex marriage licenses. He became the first Republican governor since Ernie Fletcher, who left office in 2007, and his running mate, Jenean M. Hampton (R), became the first African American elected statewide in Kentucky.
• Democrats barely held their two remaining offices. Andy Beshear (D), son of Gov. Steve Beshear, beat state Sen. Whitney Westerfield (R) for attorney general by about 2,200 votes, or two-tenths of a point. Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) held off Steve Knipper (R) by about 2 points.
• Mike Harmon (R) unseated Auditor Adam Edelen (D), who was widely expected to challenge Sen. Rand Paul (R) the next year, by about 4 points. Allison Ball (R) won the open treasurer's office by about 21 points. Ryan Quarles (R) kept the agriculture commissioner's office, open because Comer ran for governor, in Republican hands by about 20 points.

Legislature

• House (100 seats): 54 D, 46 R before the election, 54 D, 46 R after; control stayed with Democrats.
• Senate (38 seats): 12 D, 26 R before the election, 12 D, 26 R after; control stayed with Republicans.

Statewide races