They could also force more moderate candidates to move to the extremes. Republicans will also collect data and building communications channels during the primary that they can use in the general election.īut primaries are also a drain on candidate resources and fundraising networks. “Voting is habitual,” Voss said, and a Republican electorate that is mobilized in May will be more likely to turn out in November. On the plus side, a competitive primary will give Republicans a head start in organizing and turning out their voters. “I wouldn’t be shocked to get at least one more addition.”Ī growing GOP primary comes with upsides and downsides for the Republican party. Potential candidates are “reading the voters, reading their opponents, and reading the likely electability of the candidates who are in the lead,” he said. With seven months until the deadline to file for the office, Voss said there is a lot of time for additional candidates to decide there’s a path to victory or to capitalize on a potential stumble from one who is already in the race. Former Democratic House Leader Rocky Adkins followed in November, and former State Auditor Adam Edelen didn’t get in the race until January. Beshear, then the Attorney General, was the first major candidate to launch a campaign, but he didn’t do so until July. Several of the candidates filed paperwork to run in 2021, nearly two years before the general election.įor comparison, Democrats found themselves in a similar position in 2018, with a governor from the opposite party running for reelection the following year. Harmon began his campaign in April and both Quarles and Cameron launched in May. “You don’t want to miss this window with a Democrat in office,” Voss said.Īlong with Maddox, the Republican field includes Attorney General Daniel Cameron, Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles, State Auditor Mike Harmon, and a handful of lesser known candidates.Īnd they’ve gotten in early. If they assume a Republican will unseat Beshear, they’re unlikely to get a chance to run again for eight years. “The state has become so heavily and predictably Republican that candidates figure the Republican primary is tantamount to winning the governorship,” he said. Stephen Voss, a political scientist at the University of Kentucky, said the growing field of Republican candidates is a “sign of success” for the GOP. The deadline to enter the race won’t arrive until January. With State Representative Savannah Maddox’s entry into the field, there are now nine Republicans vying for the chance to unseat Democratic Gov.
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