FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky’s primary elections on Tuesday are marked by a furious four-way race for governor, with three Republican candidates nearly deadlocked after months of contentious campaigning.
The Republican contenders:
MATT BEVIN
The Louisville investment banker is best known for his unsuccessful challenge to U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell in last year’s primary that angered some of the state’s party leaders. He’s spent the past year trying to rebrand and has found a possible path to victory as a positive campaigner in large part because of the fighting between candidates James Comer and Hal Heiner.
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JAMES COMER
The veteran state lawmaker rose to prominence as the only Republican to win a statewide election in 2011 as agriculture commissioner, taking over for a department left in shambles by a popular former basketball star who is now in federal prison. Comer’s campaign has been rocked by allegations from a college girlfriend who says he abused her. Comer has flatly denied those charges and blamed his opponents, mostly Heiner, for spreading false rumors.
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HAL HEINER
The former Louisville Metro councilman lost a closer-than-expected race for mayor in 2010. He officially declared his candidacy more than a year before the primary. His stock was buoyed by the $4.2 million he loaned himself last summer, giving him a significant cash advantage in the race. After apologizing to Comer for his campaign’s contact with a blogger who had been spreading allegations that Comer abused his college girlfriend, Heiner aired a TV ad about the allegations on Friday that he said was in response to Comer’s attacks on him.
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WILL T. SCOTT
The former Kentucky Supreme Court justice abruptly resigned his seat so he could run for governor. A retired paratrooper, Scott has not been able to keep up with the top candidates’ spending and at one point resorted to jumping out of an airplane to honor the state’s veterans and garner media attention. He stands out among the more polished candidates for his unscripted speeches, which tend to get the most reaction at debates and forums.
The Democratic contenders:
JACK CONWAY
The state attorney general fell flat in a 2010 Senate race against Rand Paul but was a strong enough candidate that he did not attract meaningful opposition in the primary this time around. He has kept a low profile while the Republicans have fought for the chance to face him. But he emerged earlier this week by suing the Marathon Petroleum Company, saying its outsized control of the state’s wholesale gasoline market has stuck consumers with higher prices.
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GEOFF YOUNG
The former state worker has run for public office several times, most recently in an unsuccessful bid in the Democratic primary for Congress. Conway has ignored him. When the party held a unity rally shortly after the filing deadline, Young was not allowed in and protested from the sidewalk. He tried to have Conway removed from the ballot through the courts but was unsuccessful.
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