(Washington Examiner) Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) has won reelection in the Kentucky governor’s race, scoring a huge win for his party and likely launching himself into the national spotlight as a rising Democratic star.
The contest between Beshear and 37-year-old Republican challenger Daniel Cameron was thought to be close in the final days, with Cameron making up lost ground in the polls. In the end, it was Beshear who emerged victorious, validating surveys that showed him holding a consistent lead.
Polls taken in October found Beshear, 45, with a lead ranging from 2 points all the way up to 16 points. But the most recent poll, an Emerson College survey taken between Oct. 20 and Nov. 2, had Cameron leading for the first time by 1 point.
Both Cameron and Beshear are seen as rising stars in their parties, a fact that remains regardless of the outcome. But for Beshear, the national hype will ramp up considerably.
Beshear’s father was himself a two-term Democratic governor of Kentucky, though a campaign spokesman told CNN, “He is his own man, his own brand, his own governor.” As a young politician who has secured a second term in a red state, Beshear could be looked at as a future candidate for president or vice president.
Cameron served as legal counsel to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) from 2015 to 2017, then was elected Kentucky attorney general at 33. In September 2020, Cameron was among the final 20 for former President Donald Trump’s list of Supreme Court nominees. He is also Kentucky’s first black attorney general and would have become the state’s first black governor and the nation’s first black Republican governor.
Trump endorsed Cameron in the GOP primary, and the former president won Kentucky by 26 points in 2020. Thus, Cameron’s loss is a setback for The Donald as well.
I’ve seen enough: Andy Beshear (D) wins reelection in #KYGOV, defeating Daniel Cameron (R).
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) November 8, 2023
The Associated Press called the race for Beshear shortly before 9 p.m. EST.
