LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Attorney General Daniel Cameron has won the Republican primary for Kentucky governor and will face Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in November.
Cameron was endorsed by former President Donald Trump and emerged victorious from a 12-candidate field that included former United Nations Ambassador Kelly Craft and state Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles.
Cameron, the state’s first Black attorney general, would be the state’s first Black governor if elected. He played up the historic nature of his nomination in his victory speech Tuesday, saying his campaign aims to "embody the promise of America, that if you work hard and if you stand on principle, anything is possible.”
“To anyone who looks like me, know that you can achieve anything,” Cameron told his supporters. "Know that in this country and in Kentucky, all that matters are your values.”
The race now shifts to the general election in November.
Beshear, a popular Democratic governor, will face a tough reelection bid in a Republican-dominated state after a first term marked by a series of tragedies — the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters and a mass shooting that killed one of his closest friends.
Beshear on Tuesday touted his stewardship of Kentucky's economy — pointing to record economic development successes — in setting the stage for his fall reelection campaign. And he blasted the tone of the GOP gubernatorial primary after taking hits for months from the Republican candidates.
“Right now somewhere in America, there is a CEO deciding where to move their business and they’re considering Kentucky," Beshear told a gathering of supporters. "Let me ask you: Is seeing people talk down our state and our economy, insult our people and stoke divisions going to help that next company choose Kentucky? Of course not.”
The fall matchup between Beshear and Cameron conjures parallels from the state’s last governor’s race but with a reversal of roles for the governor.
