2011 Kentucky gubernatorial election

2011 Kentucky gubernatorial election
Turnout	28.3% 8.9 pp
	Beshear: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80%; Williams: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80%
Governor before election; Steve Beshear; Democratic	Elected Governor ; Steve Beshear; Democratic

The 2011 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2011, to elect the governor of Kentucky and the lieutenant governor of Kentucky. Incumbent Democrat Steve Beshear won re-election, defeating Republican challenger David L. Williams, then the president of the state senate, and Gatewood Galbraith, an independent candidate. Statewide turnout in this election was 28%.^[1]

Background

On July 19, 2009, Beshear announced his intention to run for re-election. However, in that announcement, he stated that then-Louisville mayor Jerry Abramson would be his running mate in 2011^[2] instead of current Lt. Governor Daniel Mongiardo, who chose to run for the U.S. Senate in 2010.^[3] Kentucky state law requires that gubernatorial candidates file to run with running mates, otherwise they cannot legally raise money. Beshear wanted to fundraise and this would have required Mongiardo also saying that he was running in 2011, which he couldn't do.^[4] Beshear and Abramson did not face any opposition for the Democratic nomination.

Among Republicans, Kentucky State Senate President David Williams from Burkesville announced his official candidacy along with running mate Richie Farmer, the term-limited State Agriculture Commissioner and former Kentucky Wildcats basketball player.^[5] Louisville businessman Phil Moffett also announced his ticket with State Representative Mike Harmon from Danville as his running mate.^[6] Moffett was seen as the Tea Party favorite.^[7] However, Williams also advocated for similar positions as Moffett, such as the repeal of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution^[8] and promoting tax reforms similar to what Moffett proposed.

Attorney Gatewood Galbraith of Lexington filed to run his fourth gubernatorial campaign as an independent on July 4, 2009, choosing marketing consultant Dea Riley as his running mate.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Steve Beshear, incumbent governor of Kentucky, 2007–2015; former Lt. Governor of Kentucky, 1983–1987; former Attorney General of Kentucky, 1979–1983; and former State Representative, 1974–1979.
- Running mate: Jerry Abramson, Louisville Mayor, 1986-1999 and 2003–2011.

Results

Democratic primary results
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Steve Beshear (incumbent)	446,048	100.00%
Total votes			446,048	100.00%

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

Bobbie Holsclaw, Jefferson County Clerk, 1998–2010, 2014–present^[9]
- Running mate: Bill Vermillion, retired U.S. Navy master chief
Phil Moffett, Louisville businessman^[10]^[11] and Tea Party activist^[7]
- Running mate: Mike Harmon, state representative, 2003–2016
David L. Williams, state senate president, 2000–2012; state senator 1987–2012; and nominee for U.S. Senate in 1992^[12]
- Running mate: Richie Farmer, Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner, 2004–2012

Polling

Poll Source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Bobbie Holsclaw	Phil Moffett	David Williams	Undecided
Survey USA^[13]	May 4–10, 2011	500	± 4.5%	12%	21%	47%	21%
Survey USA^[14]	April 8–13, 2011	507	± 4.4%	12%	14%	49%	25%

Results

Republican primary results^[15]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	David Williams	68,528	48.0%
	Republican	Phil Moffett	53,966	38.0%
	Republican	Bobbie Holsclaw	19,614	14.0%
Total votes			142,108	100.0%

Independents

Declared

Gatewood Galbraith, attorney, industrial hemp advocate and perennial candidate^[16]
- Running mate: Dea Riley, political consultant

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Rothenberg Political Report^[17]	Lean D	November 4, 2011
Governing^[18]	Lean D	November 4, 2011
Cook^[19]	Lean D	November 4, 2011
Sabato^[20]	Likely D	November 4, 2011

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Steve Beshear (D)	David Williams (R)	Gatewood Galbraith (I)	Undecided
Survey USA^[21]	October 28 – November 1, 2011	576	± 4.2%	54%	29%	9%	8%
Braun Research^[22]	October 17–19, 2011	802	± 3.5%	54%	26%	8%	12%
Survey USA^[23]	September 22–27, 2011	569	± 4.2%	57%	26%	8%	9%
Braun Research^[24]	August 29–31, 2011	803	± 3.5%	54%	25%	7%	14%
Public Policy Polling^[25]	August 25–28, 2011	600	± 4.0%	55%	28%	10%	8%
Survey USA^[26]	July 22–27, 2011	512	± 4.4%	52%	28%	9%	11%
Braun Research^[27]	June 6–8, 2011	802	± 3.5%	51%	30%	6%	14%
Survey USA^[14]	April 8–13, 2011	1,589	± 2.5%	51%	39%	—	10%
Braun Research^[28]	February 28 – March 1, 2011	804	± 3.5%	48%	38%	—	14%
Public Policy Polling^[29]	October 28–30, 2010	1,021	± 3.1%	44%	35%	—	21%
Mason-Dixon^[30]	October 18–19, 2010	625	± 4.0%	45%	30%	5%	20%
Public Policy Polling^[31]	September 11–12, 2010	959	± 3.2%	44%	39%	—	17%
Braun Research^[32]	August 30 – September 1, 2010	802	± 3.5%	44%	38%	—	18%
Braun Research^[33]	July 19–21, 2010	803	± 3.4%	48%	30%	—	20%

Hypothetical polling

With Moffett

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Steve Beshear (D)	Phil Moffett (R)	Gatewood Galbraith (I)	Other/ Undecided
Survey USA^[14]	April 8–13, 2011	1,589	± 2.5%	54%	34%	—	13%
Braun Research^[28]	February 28-March 1, 2011	804	± 3.5%	53%	28%	—	19%
Public Policy Polling^[29]	October 28–30, 2010	1,021	± 3.1%	45%	26%	—	29%
Mason-Dixon^[34]	October 18–19, 2010	625	± 4.0%	43%	24%	6%	26%
Public Policy Polling^[31]	September 11–12, 2010	959	± 3.2%	46%	28%	—	26%
Braun Research^[32]	September 1, 2010	—	—	49%	29%	—	22%

With Holsclaw

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Steve Beshear (D)	Bobbie Holsclaw (R)	Gatewood Galbraith (I)	Other/ Undecided
Survey USA^[14]	April 8–13, 2011	1,589	± 2.5%	53%	34%	—	13%
Braun Research^[28]	February 28 – March 1, 2011	804	± 3.5%	53%	27%	—	21%

Results

^[35]

Kentucky gubernatorial election, 2011
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Steve Beshear (incumbent)	464,245	55.72%	−2.99%
	Republican	David L. Williams	294,034	35.29%	−6.00%
	Independent	Gatewood Galbraith	74,860	8.99%	+8.99%
Total votes			833,139	100.00%	N/A
	Democratic hold

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

Garrard (Largest city: Lancaster)
Grayson (Largest city: Leitchfield)
Green (Largest city: Greensburg)
Jessamine (Largest city: Nicholasville)
Knox (Largest city: Barbourville)
Lincoln (Largest city: Stanford)
Oldham (Largest city: La Grange)
Taylor (Largest city: Campbellsville)

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

Bell (Largest city: Middlesboro)
Crittenden (Largest city: Marion)
Edmonson (Largest city: Brownsville)
Leslie (Largest city: Hyden)
Martin (Largest city: Inez)
Owsley (Largest city: Booneville)
Todd (Largest city: Elkton)
Trigg (Largest city: Cadiz)

By congressional district

Beshear won all 6 congressional districts, including four represented by Republicans.^[36]

District	Beshear	Williams	Galbraith	Representative
1st	54%	41%	5%	Ed Whitfield
2nd	57%	38%	6%	Brett Guthrie
3rd	67%	27%	6%	John Yarmuth
4th	53%	40%	6%	Geoff Davis
5th	47%	44%	8%	Hal Rogers
6th	56%	23%	21%	Ben Chandler

References

^ "Election summary". Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
^ Gerth, Joseph (July 19, 2009). "Abramson to be Beshear's running mate in 2011". The Courier-Journal. Archived from the original on January 2, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2009.
^ Ronnie Ellis (March 27, 2009). "Beshear endorses Mongiardo for Senate". News-tribune.net. Archived from the original on February 22, 2013. Retrieved August 18, 2012.
^ "Mongiardo considers running for Senate".
^ Alford, Roger (October 28, 2009). "Farmer mulls run for governor". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved October 28, 2009.
^ Arnold, Joe (July 29, 2010). "Phil Moffett announces candidacy for governor | WHAS11.com Louisville". Whas11.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved August 18, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Brammer, Jack (November 15, 2010). "David Williams and Phil Moffett in a battle for the Republican Party's soul". Lexington Herald Leader. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
^ Jack Brammer, Lexington Herald Leader, November 19, 2010 "Williams pushes repeal of 17th amendment"
^ Newton, Dave (January 25, 2011). "Stage Set For the Primary Election". Kentuckians For The Commonwealth. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
^ "Louisville businessman Phil Moffett running for governor : Bluegrass Politics". Bluegrasspolitics.bloginky.com. July 29, 2010. Retrieved August 18, 2012.
^ "Republican Phil Moffett announces gubernatorial campaign, hopes for Tea Party support". Apex MediaWire. July 29, 2009. Archived from the original on March 26, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2009.
^ Brammer, Jack (September 2, 2010). "David Williams and Richie Farmer form slate to seek state's top offices". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on September 3, 2010. Retrieved September 2, 2010.
^ Survey USA
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Survey USA
^ "KY – Election Results". Retrieved August 18, 2012.
^ Blackford, Linda B. (October 13, 2011). "Dea Riley brings energy, and baggage, to Gatewood Galbraith's campaign". Lexington Herald Leader. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
^ "Gubernatorial Ratings | Inside Elections". www.insideelections.com.
^ "An Update on the 2011-2012 Gubernatorial Contests". Governing. July 25, 2011. Archived from the original on August 1, 2011.
^ "2011/2012 GOVERNORS RACE RATINGS". The Cook Political Report. September 15, 2011. Archived from the original on October 7, 2011.
^ "2012 Governor". Sabato's Crystal Ball.
^ Survey USA
^ Braun Research
^ Survey USA
^ Braun Research
^ Public Policy Polling ^{[dead link‍]}
^ Survey USA
^ Braun Research
^ ^a ^b ^c Braun Research
^ ^a ^b Public Policy Polling
^ Mason-Dixon Archived May 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b Public Policy Polling
^ ^a ^b Braun Research ^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ Braun Research
^ Mason-Dixon Archived May 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
^ "KY – Election Results". Retrieved August 18, 2012.
^ https://x.com/kentucky_kiwi/status/1690856927197024258

External links

Candidates

Information

Kentucky State Board of Elections
Kentucky gubernatorial election, 2011 at Ballotpedia
Kentucky Governor Candidates Archived November 30, 2008, at the Wayback Machine at Project Vote Smart
Campaign contributions for 2011 Kentucky Governor from Follow the Money
Kentucky Governor 2011 from OurCampaigns.com
2011 Kentucky Governor – Williams vs. Beshear vs. Galbraith from Real Clear Politics

[1] "Election summary". Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2021.

[Gerth-2] Gerth, Joseph (July 19, 2009). "Abramson to be Beshear's running mate in 2011". The Courier-Journal. Archived from the original on January 2, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2009.

[Mongiardo-3] Ronnie Ellis (March 27, 2009). "Beshear endorses Mongiardo for Senate". News-tribune.net. Archived from the original on February 22, 2013. Retrieved August 18, 2012.

[4] "Mongiardo considers running for Senate".

[farmer1-5] Alford, Roger (October 28, 2009). "Farmer mulls run for governor". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved October 28, 2009.

[6] Arnold, Joe (July 29, 2010). "Phil Moffett announces candidacy for governor | WHAS11.com Louisville". Whas11.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved August 18, 2012.

[necn.com-7] Brammer, Jack (November 15, 2010). "David Williams and Phil Moffett in a battle for the Republican Party's soul". Lexington Herald Leader. Retrieved February 5, 2020.

[8] Jack Brammer, Lexington Herald Leader, November 19, 2010 "Williams pushes repeal of 17th amendment"

[9] Newton, Dave (January 25, 2011). "Stage Set For the Primary Election". Kentuckians For The Commonwealth. Retrieved February 2, 2020.

[10] "Louisville businessman Phil Moffett running for governor : Bluegrass Politics". Bluegrasspolitics.bloginky.com. July 29, 2010. Retrieved August 18, 2012.

[AMW-11] "Republican Phil Moffett announces gubernatorial campaign, hopes for Tea Party support". Apex MediaWire. July 29, 2009. Archived from the original on March 26, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2009.

[ltgovannounce-12] Brammer, Jack (September 2, 2010). "David Williams and Richie Farmer form slate to seek state's top offices". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on September 3, 2010. Retrieved September 2, 2010.

[13] Survey USA

[Survey_USA-14] Survey USA

[15] "KY – Election Results". Retrieved August 18, 2012.

[16] Blackford, Linda B. (October 13, 2011). "Dea Riley brings energy, and baggage, to Gatewood Galbraith's campaign". Lexington Herald Leader. Retrieved February 2, 2020.

[17] "Gubernatorial Ratings | Inside Elections". www.insideelections.com.

[18] "An Update on the 2011-2012 Gubernatorial Contests". Governing. July 25, 2011. Archived from the original on August 1, 2011.

[19] "2011/2012 GOVERNORS RACE RATINGS". The Cook Political Report. September 15, 2011. Archived from the original on October 7, 2011.

[20] "2012 Governor". Sabato's Crystal Ball.

[21] Survey USA

[22] Braun Research

[23] Survey USA

[24] Braun Research

[25] Public Policy Polling ^{[dead link‍]}

[26] Survey USA

[27] Braun Research

[Braun_Research-28] Braun Research

[Public_Policy_Polling-29] Public Policy Polling

[30] Mason-Dixon Archived May 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine

[dailykos.com-31] Public Policy Polling

[politics.mycn2.com-32] Braun Research ^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[33] Braun Research

[34] Mason-Dixon Archived May 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine

[35] "KY – Election Results". Retrieved August 18, 2012.

[36] ttps://x.com/kentucky_kiwi/status/1690856927197024258

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

[27]

[28]

[29]

[30]

[31]

[32]

[33]

[34]

[35]

[36]

v t e (2010 ←) 2011 United States elections (→ 2012)
U.S. House	California 36th sp Nevada 2nd sp New York 9th sp 26th sp
Governors	Kentucky Louisiana Mississippi West Virginia (special)
Other statewide races	Wisconsin Supreme Court
State legislatures	Wisconsin Senate recalls
Mayoral	Arlington, TX Aurora, CO Baltimore, MD Cary, NC Chicago, IL Charlotte, NC Colorado Springs, CO Columbus, OH Dallas, TX Denver, CO Des Moines, IA Durham, NC Evansville, IN Fayetteville, NC Fort Wayne, IN Fort Worth, TX Green Bay, WI Greensboro, NC Hartford, CT Hialeah, FL Houston, TX Indianapolis, IN Jacksonville, FL Kansas City, MO Knoxville, TN Las Vegas, NV Madison, WI Manchester, NH Miami Beach, FL Miami-Dade County, FL (recall) Miami-Dade County, FL (special) Montgomery, AL Philadelphia, PA Nashville, TN Phoenix, AZ Portland, ME Raleigh, NC Rochester, NY (special) Salt Lake City, UT San Antonio, TX San Francisco, CA South Bend, IN Spokane, WA Springfield, MA Tampa, FL Tucson, AZ Wichita, KS Worcester, MA
State	Kentucky Louisiana Mississippi Virginia Wisconsin

v t e Notable third-party performances in United States elections
* Third party is endorsed by a major party
Presidential	1788–89* 1792* 1832 1848 1856 1860 1872* 1892 1896* 1912 1924 1948 1960 1968 1980 1992 1996
Senatorial (since 1940)	California 1940 Minnesota 1940 North Dakota 1940 Wisconsin 1940 Minnesota 1942 Minnesota 1942 Nebraska 1942 Virginia 1942 North Dakota 1944 Wisconsin 1944 California 1946 (Republican write-in) North Dakota 1946 North Dakota 1946 Tennessee 1946 Arkansas 1948 Alabama 1950 New Hampshire 1950 California 1952 Maine 1952 New York 1952 North Dakota 1952 Virginia 1952 South Carolina 1954 (Democratic write-in) Virginia 1954 Utah 1958 Virginia 1958 Virginia 1960 Virginia 1964 Mississippi 1966 Virginia 1966 Virginia 1966 Alabama 1968 Alaska 1968 Maryland 1968 New York 1968 Connecticut 1970 Mississippi 1970 New York 1970 Virginia 1970 Louisiana 1972 Florida 1974 Hawaii 1974 Nevada 1974 New York 1974 Utah 1974 Minnesota 1976 Virginia 1976 Alabama 1978 Arkansas 1978 Maine 1978 Mississippi 1978 New York 1980 Washington 1982 Tennessee 1984 Virginia 1990 Alaska 1992 Arizona 1992 Hawaii 1992 Louisiana 1992 Ohio 1992 Arizona 1994 Minnesota 1994 Ohio 1994 Vermont 1994 Virginia 1994 Alaska 1996 Minnesota 1996 Arizona 2000 Massachusetts 2000 Minnesota 2000 Alaska 2002 Kansas 2002 Massachusetts 2002 Mississippi 2002 Oklahoma 2002 Virginia 2002 Oklahoma 2004 Connecticut 2006 Indiana 2006 Maine 2006 Vermont 2006* Arkansas 2008 Idaho 2008 Minnesota 2008 Oregon 2008 Alaska 2010 (Republican write-in) Florida 2010 Indiana 2010 South Carolina 2010 Utah 2010 Indiana 2012 Maine 2012 Maryland 2012 Missouri 2012 Montana 2012 Vermont 2012* Kansas 2014 South Dakota 2014 Wyoming 2014 Alaska 2016 Arizona 2016 Idaho 2016 Indiana 2016 Kansas 2016 Maine 2018 New Mexico 2018 Vermont 2018* Alaska 2020* Arkansas 2020 Minnesota 2020 Nebraska 2020 Idaho 2022 North Dakota 2022 Utah 2022* Maine 2024 Nebraska 2024 Utah 2024 Vermont 2024*
Gubernatorial (since 1940)	Minnesota 1940 Wisconsin 1940 Connecticut 1942 Minnesota 1942 New York 1942 Wisconsin 1942 North Dakota 1944 Wisconsin 1944 California 1946 Tennessee 1950 Maine 1952 Vermont 1952 Tennessee 1954 Nebraska 1956 Texas 1956 Utah 1956 Oklahoma 1958 Tennessee 1958 North Dakota 1960 Tennessee 1962 Virginia 1965 Alabama 1966 Georgia 1966 Idaho 1966 Maryland 1966 New York 1966 Tennessee 1966 Alabama 1970 Arkansas 1970 New Hampshire 1970 New York 1970 Mississippi 1971 New Hampshire 1972 Texas 1972 Washington 1972 Virginia 1973 Maine 1974 Nebraska 1974 Nevada 1974 Texas 1974 Vermont 1974 Vermont 1976 Alaska 1978 California 1978 Maine 1978 Rhode Island 1978 Alaska 1982 Arizona 1982 Hawaii 1982 Alaska 1986 Arizona 1986 Illinois 1986 Maine 1986 Oklahoma 1986 Vermont 1986 Utah 1988 Alaska 1990 Connecticut 1990 Kansas 1990 Maine 1990 New York 1990 Oklahoma 1990 Oregon 1990 Utah 1992 West Virginia 1992 Alaska 1994 Connecticut 1994 Hawaii 1994 Maine 1994 New Mexico 1994 Oklahoma 1994 Pennsylvania 1994 Rhode Island 1994 Vermont 1994 Alaska 1998 Maine 1998 Minnesota 1998 New York 1998 Pennsylvania 1998 Rhode Island 1998 Kentucky 1999 New Hampshire 2000 Vermont 2000 Arizona 2002 California 2002 Maine 2002 Minnesota 2002 New Mexico 2002 New York 2002 Oklahoma 2002 Vermont 2002 Wisconsin 2002 Alaska 2006 Illinois 2006 Maine 2006 Massachusetts 2006 Minnesota 2006 Texas 2006 Louisiana 2007 Vermont 2008 New Jersey 2009 Colorado 2010 Idaho 2010 Maine 2010 Massachusetts 2010 Minnesota 2010 Rhode Island 2010 Wyoming 2010 Kentucky 2011 Virginia 2013 Alaska 2014* Hawaii 2014 Maine 2014 Rhode Island 2014 Wyoming 2014 Maine 2018 Kansas 2018 Indiana 2020 Vermont 2020* Alaska 2022 Idaho 2022 Oregon 2022 North Dakota 2024 Utah 2024 (Republican write-in)
Territorial Governors (since 1970)	U.S. Virgin Islands 1970 Puerto Rico 1972 District of Columbia 1974 U.S. Virgin Islands 1974 U.S. Virgin Islands 1978 Puerto Rico 1980 U.S. Virgin Islands 1986 Puerto Rico 1988 U.S. Virgin Islands 1990 U.S. Virgin Islands 1994 U.S. Virgin Islands 1998 Puerto Rico 2000 Northern Mariana Islands 2001 U.S. Virgin Islands 2002 Northern Mariana Islands 2005 U.S. Virgin Islands 2006 Northern Mariana Islands 2009 District of Columbia 2010 U.S. Virgin Islands 2010 District of Columbia 2014 Northern Mariana Islands 2014 U.S. Virgin Islands 2014 Puerto Rico 2016 District of Columbia 2018 Guam 2018 Northern Mariana Islands 2018 U.S. Virgin Islands 2018 Puerto Rico 2020 District of Columbia 2022 Northern Mariana Islands 2022 U.S. Virgin Islands 2022 Puerto Rico 2024
State legislative	Alaska Hawaii Louisiana Montana West Virginia Wyoming
Portal:Politics Third party (U.S. politics) List of third-party and independent performances in United States elections Third-party and independent members of the United States Congress

Background

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

Polling

Results

Independents

Declared

General election

Predictions

Polling

Results

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

By congressional district

See also

References

External links