2020 Kentucky Senate election
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19 out of 38 seats in the Kentucky Senate 20 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Results: Republican hold Republican gain Democratic hold No election Popular vote: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% >90% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in Kentucky |
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 Government |
The 2020 Kentucky Senate election was held on November 3, 2020. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were held on June 23. Half of the senate seats (all odd-numbered seats) were up for election. Republicans increased their majority in the chamber, gaining two seats.
A numbered map of the senate districts at the time can be viewed here.
Overview
[edit]
| |||||||||||
| Party | Candidates | Votes | % | Seats | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposed | Unopposed | Before | Won | After | +/− | ||||||
| Republican | 11 | 3 | 532,205 | 59.01 | 28 | 14 | 30 | +2 | |||
| Democratic | 9 | 4 | 340,042 | 37.70 | 10 | 5 | 8 | -2 | |||
| Libertarian | 3 | 0 | 20,927 | 2.32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | |||
| Independent | 2 | 0 | 8,423 | 0.93 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | |||
| Write-in | 3 | 0 | 268 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | |||
| Total | 28 | 7 | 901,865 | 100.00 | 38 | 19 | 38 | ±0 | |||
| Source: Kentucky Secretary of State | |||||||||||
Retiring incumbents
[edit]A total of three senators (two Democrats and one Republican) retired, none of whom ran for other offices.
Democratic
[edit]- 7th: Julian M. Carroll (Frankfort): Retired
- 37th: Perry B. Clark (Louisville): Retired
Republican
[edit]- 1st: Stan Humphries (Cadiz): Retired
Incumbents defeated
[edit]One incumbent lost renomination in the primary election, and one incumbent lost reelection in the general election.
In the primary election
[edit]Republicans
[edit]One Republican lost renomination.
- 21st: Albert Robinson (first elected in 1994) lost renomination to Brandon J. Storm, who won the general election.
In the general election
[edit]Democrats
[edit]One Democrat lost reelection to a Republican.
- 29th: Johnny Ray Turner (first elected in 2000) lost to Johnnie L. Turner.
Summary by district
[edit]Certified results by the Kentucky Secretary of State are available online for the primary election and general election.
† – Incumbent not seeking re-election
| District | Incumbent | Party | Elected | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stan Humphries† | Rep | Jason G. Howell | Rep | ||
| 3 | Whitney H. Westerfield | Rep | Whitney H. Westerfield | Rep | ||
| 5 | Stephen L. Meredith | Rep | Stephen L. Meredith | Rep | ||
| 7 | Julian M. Carroll† | Dem | Adrienne E. Southworth | Rep | ||
| 9 | David P. Givens | Rep | David P. Givens | Rep | ||
| 11 | John Schickel | Rep | John Schickel | Rep | ||
| 13 | Reginald Thomas | Dem | Reginald Thomas | Dem | ||
| 15 | Rick Girdler | Rep | Rick Girdler | Rep | ||
| 17 | Damon Thayer | Rep | Damon Thayer | Rep | ||
| 19 | Morgan McGarvey | Dem | Morgan McGarvey | Dem | ||
| 21 | Albert Robinson | Rep | Brandon Jackson Storm | Rep | ||
| 23 | Chris McDaniel | Rep | Chris McDaniel | Rep | ||
| 25 | Robert Stivers | Rep | Robert Stivers | Rep | ||
| 27 | Steve West | Rep | Steve West | Rep | ||
| 29 | Johnny Ray Turner | Dem | Johnnie L. Turner | Rep | ||
| 31 | Phillip Wheeler | Rep | Phillip Wheeler | Rep | ||
| 33 | Gerald A. Neal | Dem | Gerald A. Neal | Dem | ||
| 35 | Denise Harper Angel | Dem | Denise Harper Angel | Dem | ||
| 37 | Perry B. Clark† | Dem | David Yates | Dem | ||
Crossover seats
[edit]Democratic
[edit]Three districts voted for Donald Trump in 2016 but had Democratic incumbents:
| District | Incumbent | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Trump margin of victory in 2016 |
Member | Party | Incumbent margin of victory in 2016 |
| 7 | R+24.18 | Julian M. Carroll | Democratic | Unopposed |
| 29 | R+58.30 | Johnny Ray Turner | Democratic | Unopposed |
| 37 | R+5.54 | Perry B. Clark | Democratic | Unopposed |
Republican
[edit]None.
Closest races
[edit]Seats where the margin of victory was under 10%:
- District 29, 6.80% (gain)
- District 7, 9.48% (gain)
Predictions
[edit]| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report[1] | Solid R | October 21, 2020 |
Special elections
[edit]District 31 special
[edit]
Wheeler
- 50–60%
- 70–80%
Pugh
- 50–60%
- 70–80%
Phillip Wheeler was elected in March 2019 following the resignation of Ray Jones II.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Phillip Wheeler | 6,188 | 52.3 | ||
| Democratic | Darrell Pugh | 5,649 | 47.7 | ||
| Total votes | 11,837 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | |||||
District 38 special
[edit]Mike Nemes was elected in January 2020 following the resignation of Dan Seum.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mike Nemes | 8,637 | 63.6 | ||
| Democratic | Andrew Bailey | 4,943 | 36.4 | ||
| Total votes | 13,580 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
District 26 special
[edit]Karen Berg was elected in June 2020 following the resignation of Ernie Harris.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Karen Berg | 24,771 | 57.0 | ||
| Republican | Bill Ferko | 18,705 | 43.0 | ||
| Total votes | 43,476 | 100.0 | |||
| Democratic gain from Republican | |||||
District 1
[edit]Incumbent senator Stan Humphries did not seek reelection. He was succeeded by Republican Jason G. Howell.
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jason G. Howell | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 40,128 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
District 3
[edit]Incumbent senator Whitney H. Westerfield won reelection, defeating Libertarian candidate Amanda Billings.
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Whitney H. Westerfield, incumbent senator
Third-party candidates
[edit]Libertarian party
[edit]- Amanda Billings
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Whitney H. Westerfield (incumbent) | 29,640 | 78.4 | |
| Libertarian | Amanda Billings | 8,157 | 21.6 | |
| Total votes | 37,797 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 5
[edit]Incumbent senator Stephen L. Meredith won reelection, defeating Independent and Libertarian candidates.
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Stephen L. Meredith, incumbent senator
Independent candidates
[edit]- John Whipple
Third-party candidates
[edit]Libertarian party
[edit]- Guy M. Miller
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Stephen L. Meredith (incumbent) | 43,385 | 82.0 | |
| Independent | John Whipple | 5,724 | 10.8 | |
| Libertarian | Guy M. Miller | 3,781 | 7.1 | |
| Total votes | 52,890 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 7
[edit]Incumbent senator Julian M. Carroll did not seek reelection. He was succeeded by Republican Adrienne E. Southworth.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Joe Graviss, representative from the 56th district (2019–2021)
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Cleaver Kirk Crawford
- Katie Howard
- Calen Studler
- Linda Thompson
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Adrienne E. Southworth | 3,701 | 31.1 | |
| Republican | Katie Howard | 3,157 | 26.5 | |
| Republican | Calen Studler | 2,697 | 22.7 | |
| Republican | Linda Thompson | 1,952 | 16.4 | |
| Republican | Cleaver Kirk Crawford | 390 | 3.3 | |
| Total votes | 11,897 | 100.0 | ||
Independent candidates
[edit]- Ken Carroll
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Adrienne E. Southworth | 33,187 | 52.6 | |
| Democratic | Joe Graviss | 27,205 | 43.1 | |
| Independent | Ken Carroll | 2,699 | 4.3 | |
| Total votes | 63,091 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||
Results by county
[edit]| County | Adrienne E. Southworth | Joe Graviss | Ken Carroll | Margin | Total votes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Anderson | 8,862 | 68.20 | 3,744 | 28.81 | 388 | 2.99 | 5,118 | 39.39 | 12,994 |
| Franklin | 10,731 | 41.45 | 13,562 | 52.39 | 1,594 | 6.16 | -2,831 | -10.94 | 25,887 |
| Gallatin | 2,650 | 70.27 | 931 | 24.69 | 190 | 5.04 | 1,719 | 45.58 | 3,771 |
| Owen | 3,994 | 74.72 | 1,163 | 21.76 | 188 | 3.52 | 2,831 | 52.97 | 5,345 |
| Woodford | 6,950 | 46.04 | 7,805 | 51.71 | 339 | 2.25 | -855 | -5.66 | 15,094 |
| Total | 33,187 | 52.60 | 27,205 | 43.12 | 2,699 | 4.28 | 5,982 | 9.48 | 63,091 |
District 9
[edit]Incumbent senator David P. Givens won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Brian Pedigo.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Brian Pedigo
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- David P. Givens, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | David P. Givens (incumbent) | 41,555 | 78.5 | |
| Democratic | Brian Pedigo | 11,356 | 21.5 | |
| Total votes | 52,911 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 11
[edit]Incumbent senator John Schickel won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate James Fiorelli.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- James Fiorelli
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- John Schickel, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Schickel (incumbent) | 46,463 | 70.4 | |
| Democratic | James Fiorelli | 19,496 | 29.6 | |
| Total votes | 65,959 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 13
[edit]Incumbent senator Reginald Thomas won reelection, defeating write-in candidate Matt E. Miniard.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Reginald Thomas, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Reginald Thomas (incumbent) | 36,345 | 99.8 | |
| Write-in | Matt E. Miniard | 55 | 0.2 | |
| Total votes | 36,400 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
District 15
[edit]Incumbent senator Rick Girdler won reelection, defeating primary election challenger Larry Sears Nichols.
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Rick Girdler, incumbent senator
Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Larry Sears Nichols
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Rick Girdler (incumbent) | 14,140 | 78.3 | |
| Republican | Larry Sears Nichols | 3,923 | 21.7 | |
| Total votes | 18,063 | 100.0 | ||
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Rick Girdler (incumbent) | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 47,098 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
District 17
[edit]Incumbent senator Damon Thayer won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Jason Stroude.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Jason Stroude
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Damon Thayer, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Damon Thayer (incumbent) | 44,772 | 69.3 | |
| Democratic | Jason Stroude | 19,852 | 30.7 | |
| Total votes | 64,624 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 19
[edit]Incumbent senator Morgan McGarvey won reelection unopposed.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Morgan McGarvey, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Morgan McGarvey (incumbent) | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 50,867 | 100.0 | |||
| Democratic hold | |||||
District 21
[edit]Incumbent Republican senator Albert Robinson was defeated for renomination by Brandon Jackson Storm.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Walter Trebolo III
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Kay Hensley
- Albert Robinson, incumbent senator
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Brandon Jackson Storm | 6,875 | 38.7 | |
| Republican | Albert Robinson (incumbent) | 6,131 | 34.5 | |
| Republican | Kay Hensley | 4,756 | 26.8 | |
| Total votes | 17,762 | 100.0 | ||
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Brandon Jackson Storm | 44,099 | 82.4 | |
| Democratic | Walter Trebolo III | 9,447 | 17.6 | |
| Total votes | 53,546 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 23
[edit]Incumbent senator Chris McDaniel won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Ryan Olexia.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Ryan Olexia
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Chris McDaniel, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Chris McDaniel (incumbent) | 32,188 | 57.7 | |
| Democratic | Ryan Olexia | 23,623 | 42.3 | |
| Total votes | 55,811 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 25
[edit]Incumbent senator Robert Stivers won reelection unopposed.
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Robert Stivers, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Robert Stivers (incumbent) | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 37,141 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
District 27
[edit]Incumbent senator Steve West won reelection, defeating Libertarian and write-in candidates.
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Steve West, incumbent senator
Third-party candidates
[edit]Libertarian party
[edit]- Bryan Shumate Short
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steve West (incumbent) | 38,370 | 80.7 | |
| Libertarian | Bryan Shumate Short | 8,989 | 18.9 | |
| Write-in | Yvonne Baldwin | 166 | 0.3 | |
| Write-in | Gene Barry Detherage Jr. | 47 | 0.1 | |
| Total votes | 47,572 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 29
[edit]Incumbent senator Johnny Ray Turner was defeated for reelection by Republican Johnnie L. Turner.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Johnny Ray Turner, incumbent senator
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Johnnie L. Turner, representative from the 88th district (1999–2003)
Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Matthew Wynn
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Johnnie L. Turner | 3,552 | 69.9 | |
| Republican | Matthew Wynn | 1,527 | 30.1 | |
| Total votes | 5,079 | 100.0 | ||
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Johnnie L. Turner | 22,475 | 53.4 | |
| Democratic | Johnny Ray Turner (incumbent) | 19,612 | 46.6 | |
| Total votes | 42,087 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||
Results by county
[edit]| County | Johnnie L. Turner | Johnny Ray Turner | Margin | Total votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Floyd | 6,097 | 37.50 | 10,161 | 62.50 | -4,064 | -25.00 | 16,258 |
| Harlan | 8,431 | 78.49 | 2,310 | 21.51 | 6,121 | 56.99 | 10,741 |
| Knott | 3,047 | 49.62 | 3,094 | 50.38 | -47 | -0.77 | 6,141 |
| Letcher | 4,900 | 54.77 | 4,047 | 45.23 | 853 | 9.53 | 8,947 |
| Total | 22,475 | 53.40 | 19,612 | 46.60 | 2,863 | 6.80 | 42,087 |
District 31
[edit]Incumbent senator Phillip Wheeler won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Glenn Martin Hammond.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Glenn Martin Hammond
Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Scott Sykes
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Glenn Martin Hammond | 5,559 | 59.2 | |
| Democratic | Scott Sykes | 3,836 | 40.8 | |
| Total votes | 9,395 | 100.0 | ||
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Phillip Wheeler, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Phillip Wheeler (incumbent) | 31,704 | 72.2 | |
| Democratic | Glenn Martin Hammond | 12,196 | 27.8 | |
| Total votes | 43,900 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
District 33
[edit]Incumbent senator Gerald A. Neal won reelection unopposed.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Gerald A. Neal, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gerald A. Neal (incumbent) | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 38,520 | 100.0 | |||
| Democratic hold | |||||
District 35
[edit]Incumbent senator Denise Harper Angel won reelection unopposed.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Denise Harper Angel, incumbent senator
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Denise Harper Angel (incumbent) | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 37,358 | 100.0 | |||
| Democratic hold | |||||
District 37
[edit]Incumbent senator Perry B. Clark did not seek reelection. He was succeeded by Democrat David Yates.
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Katie Brophy
- Garrett A. Dean
- Di Tran
Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | David Yates | 10,946 | 67.0 | |
| Democratic | Katie Brophy | 2,708 | 16.6 | |
| Democratic | Garrett A. Dean | 1,345 | 8.2 | |
| Democratic | Di Tran | 1,343 | 8.2 | |
| Total votes | 16,342 | 100.0 | ||
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | David Yates | Unopposed | |||
| Total votes | 34,165 | 100.0 | |||
| Democratic hold | |||||
References
[edit]- ^ "October Overview: Handicapping the 2020 State Legislature Races". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved April 26, 2024.