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| Elections in Kentucky |
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Kentucky state elections in 2018 were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018, with the primary elections being held on May 22, 2018.[a] These midterm elections occurred during the presidency of Republican Donald Trump and the governorship of Republican Matt Bevin, alongside other elections in the United States. All six of Kentucky's seats in the United States House of Representatives, nineteen of the 38 seats in the Kentucky State Senate, all 100 seats in the Kentucky House of Representatives, and one of the seven seats on the Kentucky Supreme Court were contested. Numerous county and local elections were also contested within the state.
In the United States House of Representatives, all six of Kentucky's incumbent congressional representatives won their individual elections. With 59.59% of ballots cast in favor of the Republican congressional candidates, the Republican party maintained its five-seat majority within the congressional delegation; Representative John Yarmuth of Kentucky's 3rd congressional district maintained his position as the only Democrat in the United States Congress from Kentucky. All six of Kentucky's incumbent representatives were reelected with at least 60% of the vote in their respective districts. Aside from the election in Kentucky's 1st congressional district, all incumbents were challenged by at least one Libertarian or Independent candidate, though no third-party candidates were able to obtain more than 2.5% of the vote.
In the Kentucky General Assembly, Democrats made a net gain of one seat,[b] while Republicans maintained their supermajorities in both chambers of the state legislature. As the office of governor was not contested in the 2018 elections, Republicans maintained their state-level trifecta established in the 2016 elections. As Kentucky's judicial elections are non-partisan, there was no change in the partisan makeup of the Kentucky Supreme Court.
While voter turnout in the United States as a whole reached its highest point seen in a midterm election since 1914, Kentucky voter turnout remained unaffected. With approximately 45.90% of Kentucky's 3.4 million registered voters casting ballots in the election,[1][2] turnout as a percentage of registered voters remained unchanged from 2014 levels, although the total number of ballots cast did increase.[3]
During the campaign, Democrats focused heavily on public education and teacher pay, frequently attacking Republicans for their support of, among other issues, a controversial overhaul to Kentucky's teacher pension system. Republican messaging centered around a theme of maintaining their trifecta, with claims that a divided legislature would not be able to get anything done.
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- ^ Kobin, Billy (November 7, 2018). "Kentucky Voter Turnout 2018: Louisville election polls packed". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
- ^ "Kentucky has more than 3.4 million registered voters". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. October 10, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
- ^ "Voter Turnout Kentucky 2014 Midterm election" (PDF). Kentucky Secretary of State. February 5, 2015. Retrieved July 15, 2019.