Joe Sonka

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear defeated GOP challenger Daniel Cameron by about five percentage points during Kentucky's gubernatorial election last week. With Republicans controlling 80% of seats in the legislature and all other statewide elected offices, the party is trying to figure out what went wrong.

The last time Kentuckians voted for a governor in 2019, the margin of victory was so thin on election night that the defeated candidate, then-GOP Gov. Matt Bevin, did not concede the loss until nine days later.

Spending by candidates and political groups in Kentucky’s 2023 race for governor have already doubled the pace from the state’s 2019 general election for the office, with more than $59 million spent since the May primary. And we don’t yet know how much candidates will raise and spend in the final two weeks of the campaign – often the most expensive part of the race.