Kentucky already gets gubernatorial candidate for 2023

(The Center Square) – Kentucky won’t vote for governor again until 2023, but one top Republican in the state has already thrown his hat into the ring.

State Auditor Mike Harmon released a statement Monday explaining he’s filed paperwork to launch his campaign for the GOP’s nomination.

“My launch is not filled with fireworks and fanfare, but merely my strong determination to help renew Kentucky and hopefully help this state become the best version of itself it can be,” Harmon said in the statement.

The Junction City resident won his first election for auditor in 2015, garnering nearly 52% of the vote to defeat Democratic incumbent Adam Edelen. He got 55.7% of the vote to win re-election in 2019, beating Democrat Sheri Donahue and Libertarian Kyle Hugenberg.

Kentucky law bars individuals from serving more than two consecutive terms for a state office.

Before he became the state’s auditor, Harmon served as a state representative representing Boyle and Casey counties, southwest of Lexington in central Kentucky.

While the election is more than two years away, there has been substantial interest in and speculation about the race since Democrat Gov. Andy Beshear beat then GOP incumbent Matt Bevin in 2019. Beshear was the only Democrat to win a statewide office in Kentucky that year.

Beshear’s first year in office was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, and Republicans have been critical of his performance, especially regarding emergency orders pertaining to businesses and unemployment.

In his statement, he took aim at Beshear’s record.

“Over the last year and a half, sadly Kentuckians have had their liberties and their livelihoods suspended and stolen while promises to make those losses whole have gone for the most part unfulfilled,” Harmon said.

Harmon’s office uncovered several issues with the Kentucky Office of Unemployment Insurance, including finding that more than 400,000 emails from claimants were unread for months and that the department had “poor internal controls” that led to some claimants being overpaid while others were not paid at all.

Harmon told Kentucky Public Radio that he’s declaring this early because he does not have the finances “to cut a check” just before the January 2023 filing deadline.

“For me, it was important to go ahead and get out and begin to put the structure in place and make sure to raise some monies,” he said in the interview.

Despite Kentucky’s strong Republican slant in recent elections – the GOP holds supermajorities in both General Assembly chambers and holds every statewide office except for governor and lieutenant governor – Beshear has held strong favorability ratings during the early stages of his term.

A Mason-Dixon poll taken in February showed Beshear enjoyed a 55% approval rating. His strongest support came from Louisville and Lexington, the two largest cities and Democratic strong spots. However, the poll found that a majority of registered voters in northern and eastern Kentucky also approved of his performance.

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