Beshear’s Comments

Democrat Gov reveals his eyes are on a presidential prize

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Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D) made some comments during an exclusive interview with a Louisville television reporter that put forth some of his thoughts about running for President. The interview also revealed that he is not currently considering a bid for his state’s open US Senate seat.

Gov. Beshear said, in an answer to Louisville television news reporter Isaiah Kim-Martinez’s question about running for President, that “What matters to me is that I don't leave a broken country to my kids. And if I'm somebody who can bring people together and heal this country, then it's something I'll consider.”

The Democratic leadership would certainly like to see Gov. Beshear run for the Senate because he, realistically, is the only Democrat who would have a chance at converting retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell’s seat away from the Republicans. 

The Governor’s recent actions, however, suggest that a Senate campaign isn’t on his political radar. Mr. Beshear is conducting many national interviews, traveling the country to appear at fundraising events for state parties and individual candidates, hosting a podcast concentrating on national politics, and in January will become chairman of the Democratic Governors Association. These activities clearly suggest a politician with national rather than statewide ambitions.

Gov. Beshear’s current actions are good news for Republicans, particularly US Senate candidates Daniel Cameron, the former state Attorney General who lost the 2023 Governor’s campaign to Beshear, and US Rep. Andy Barr (R-Lexington). Without the Governor in the Senate race, the GOP primary winner next May will automatically become the prohibitive favorite to win the 2026 general election.

A potential Beshear presidential candidacy, however, sets up an interesting intra-party dynamic. Another now-former southern Democratic Governor, North Carolina’s Roy Cooper, who was ineligible to seek a third term in 2024, is also considering a presidential run and is another Governor or ex-Governor that the Democratic leadership would like to see run for the Senate. 

Thinking about a lone Democratic presidential candidate hailing from the southern region makes that person a legitimate contender for the party nomination, assuming he can sweep the block of the Deep South and border state bound delegate votes.  Therefore, either Gov. Beshear or former Gov. Cooper would be considered a credible national candidate so long as only one runs for President. Otherwise, the regional votes would be split, thus likely dooming them both.

The open 2028 presidential election will feature a huge number of Democratic candidates, many of whom are Governors or former Governors – Beshear, Cooper, 2024 Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz (MN), Wes Moore (MD), Gavin Newsom (CA), J.B. Pritzker (IL), Josh Shapiro (PA) and Gretchen Whitmer (MI) are all potential candidates – along with many others who are not state chief executives. 

Geography is a key point that brings into central focus the Democratic National Committee members’ decision in scheduling the nomination calendar. The order in which the states vote will be a major intangible factor directly relating to who wins the next Democratic presidential nomination. Yet, it remains to be seen which states are sanctioned to vote before the eventual Super Tuesday date.

Remember, in the 2024 nomination campaign, the Democrats ditched Iowa and New Hampshire as the traditional first voting states. This left only the South Carolina, Michigan and Nevada electorates to cast the initial nomination votes prior to the Super Tuesday bonanza which featured 16 voting entities (15 states and one territory). Under the 2024 schedule, Gov. Whitmer would be in prime position because her large state, Michigan (117 delegates), is the only pre-Super Tuesday domain from where a prospective national candidate hails. 

Also, under current party rules, the Super Delegates, those party leaders and elected officials who have elite status, are ironically not allowed to vote for President on the first ballot. The DNC members will also decide whether this practice will continue. 

Thus, the future DNC meetings where the presidential primary schedule and the Super Delegate issues will be brought before the members and create major discussion points will be pivotal, to say the least.

Therefore, certain key decisions about the party’s nomination structure will soon be answered, and long before the first primary votes are cast in whatever states are ultimately slotted before Super Tuesday.   

Jim Ellis is a 35-year veteran of politics at the state and national levels. He has served ss executive director for two national political action committees, as well as a consultant to the three national Republican Party organizations in DC, the National Federation of Independent Business, and various national conservative groups.

Born and raised in Sacramento, California, he earned a B. A. in Political Science from the University of California at Davis in 1979. Jim raised his daughter, Jacqueline, alone after his wife died following a tragic car accident. He helped establish the Joan Ellis Victims Assistance Network in Rochester, NH. Jim also is a member of the Northern Virginia Football Officials Association, which officiates high school games throughout the region.

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