In an increasingly red state, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear won reelection to a second term on Tuesday, securing another noteworthy statewide win that may serve as a blueprint for other Democrats hoping to prosper politically in the run-up to the pivotal presidential election of the following year.
Beshear, 45, defeated Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron, a protégé of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, by riding his stewardship over record economic growth and his handling of numerous disasters, including tornadoes, floods, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Beshear repeatedly attacked Cameron during the campaign for his support of the state’s comprehensive abortion ban, which does not make an exception for rape or incest victims. This may have been a prelude to how Democrats will run in 2024.
Read: Panel Appointed By Kentucky Governor Approves Coal Plant Closures On Election Eve
With Republicans maintaining supermajorities in both chambers of the legislature and controlling the state’s congressional delegation, including both U.S. Senate seats, the result gives divided government in Kentucky another vote of approval from the electorate.
The Beshear victory upholds a family dynasty that has consistently resisted the Bluegrass State’s Republican drift.
Steve Beshear, his father, is a well-liked former governor who served two terms. Andy Beshear will have served as Kentucky’s governor for 16 of the previous 20 years by the time of his second, four-year term ends.
On Monday, the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) and its three appointed members issued approval of a plan to shut down two coal-fired power plants in the state on the eve of its Tuesday gubernatorial election.
Beshear appointed the PSC’s three sitting members, which issued an order late Monday evening that allows Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities to retire two coal-fired units and three-natural gas units, which will be replaced with a new natural gas unit and solar and battery storage.
Beshear, a Democrat who has hesitated to embrace the hardline green energy policies favored by an increasing share of his party, is competing against Republican Kentucky Attorney General David Cameron, who has made protecting Kentucky’s coal industry a key point of his campaign, in Tuesday’s election for the state’s top executive position.
Read: Rep. Gaetz Of Florida Renews Call For National Day Of Remembrance In 2019 Navy Base Terror Attack
“While I appreciate the Public Service Commission’s decision to keep open the Mercer and Carroll County plants, half measures don’t cut it for the thousands of Kentucky families who will be impacted by the concurrent closures,” Cameron said of the decisions. “The fight to protect Kentucky coal continues. To those who have been victimized by the anti-coal agenda, I am more determined than ever to fight for you.”
Apart from his campaign messaging, Cameron has defended the coal industry in his capacity as the state’s attorney general, suing to fight federal regulation that would inhibit the industry.
Kentucky has an energy-intensive state economy, and about 20% of the operational coal mines in the U.S. are located in the state, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The coal industry employed about 5,000 people in the state in 2022, a sharp decline from the more than 16,000 jobs the industry provided in 2012, according to data from Statista.
Android Users, Click To Download The Free Press App And Never Miss A Story. Follow Us On Facebook and Twitter. Signup for our free newsletter.
We can’t do this without your help; visit our GiveSendGo page and donate any dollar amount; every penny helps