Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2022
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| Kentucky's 1st Congressional District |
|---|
 |
| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: January 25, 2022 |
| Primary: May 17, 2022 General: November 8, 2022 |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Voting in Kentucky |
| Race ratings |
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican Inside Elections: Solid Republican Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2022 |
| See also |
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th Kentucky elections, 2022 U.S. Congress elections, 2022 U.S. Senate elections, 2022 U.S. House elections, 2022 |
All U.S. House districts, including the 1st Congressional District of Kentucky, held elections in 2022. The general election was on November 8, 2022. The primary was scheduled for May 17, 2022. The filing deadline was January 25, 2022.
For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:
- Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2022 (May 17 Democratic primary)
- Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2022 (May 17 Republican primary)
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for U.S. House Kentucky District 1
Incumbent James Comer Jr. defeated Jimmy Ausbrooks in the general election for U.S. House Kentucky District 1 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | James Comer Jr. (R) | 74.9 | 184,157 |
 | Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)  | 25.1 | 61,701 | |
| Total votes: 245,858 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Jimmy Ausbrooks advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent James Comer Jr. advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1.
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- David Sharp (R)
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Kentucky
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
Survey responses from candidates in this race
Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
| Collapse all
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
“We need to stand and celebrate inclusion and diversity, not hate and violence.”
"Common sense is key to structured solution for problems, and common sense is missing in Washington. The time for restoring the utilization of common sense in Congress Vs. politics as usual and noting being achieved."
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Healthcare-A universal healthcare system should be providing quality care to all Americans regardless of social-economic status. Healthcare is a human right and should never be assumed it is a privilege. Lifesaving treatment and preventive care should be a $0 cost, and prescription medications should have a $0 cost.
Abortion- A woman’s right to govern her own body and make her own right to reproductive privacy and choice. Women should have the independent choice to govern themselves and their bodies, and not restricted or denied, “The day our rights are taken away, the rights of others are on the horizon, and the day will come when we all have no rights”.
Human Rights-No person should be denied jobs, housing, and human dignity based on their religion, color, creed, gender or sex orientation. The plight of individuals of color, women, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community are placed at higher risk of social injustice, denied and restricted rights, and treated less than.
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
To Hear To Serve
To Represent
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Jimmy Ausbrooks (D)
Campaign finance
This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.[1] It does not include information on fundraising before the current campaign cycle or on spending by satellite groups. The numbers in this section are updated as candidates file new campaign finance reports. Candidates for Congress are required to file financial reports on a quarterly basis, as well as two weeks before any primary, runoff, or general election in which they will be on the ballot and upon the termination of any campaign committees.[2] Click here to view the reporting schedule for candidates for U.S. Congress in 2022.
| U.S. Congress campaign reporting schedule, 2022 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Report | Close of books | Filing deadline |
| Year-end 2021 | 12/31/2021 | 1/31/2022 |
| April quarterly | 3/31/2022 | 4/15/2022 |
| July quarterly | 6/30/2022 | 7/15/2022 |
| October quarterly | 9/30/2022 | 10/15/2022 |
| Pre-general | 10/19/2022 | 10/27/2022 |
| Post-general | 11/28/2022 | 12/08/2022 |
| Year-end 2022 | 12/31/2022 | 1/31/2023 |
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Comer Jr. | Republican Party | $1,649,490 | $974,131 | $1,077,822 | As of December 31, 2022 |
| Jimmy Ausbrooks | Democratic Party | $7,867 | $7,867 | $0 | As of December 31, 2022 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2022. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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General election race ratings
- See also: Race rating definitions and methods
Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:
- Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
- Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
- Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[3]
- Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.
Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[4][5][6]
| Race ratings: Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2022 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race tracker | Race ratings | ||||||||
| November 8, 2022 | November 1, 2022 | October 25, 2022 | October 18, 2022 | ||||||
| The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | |||||
| Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | |||||
| Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||
| Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week. | |||||||||
Ballot access requirements
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Kentucky in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Kentucky, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2022 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Filing fee | Filing deadline | Source |
| Kentucky | U.S. House | Ballot-qualified party | 2 | $500.00 | 1/25/2022 | Source |
| Kentucky | U.S. House | Unaffiliated | 400 | $500.00 | 6/7/2022 | Source |
District analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.
- District map - A map of the district before and after redistricting.
- Effect of redistricting - How districts in the state changed as a result of redistricting following the 2020 census.
- Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2022 U.S. House elections in the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
- Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.
- State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
District map
Below was the map in use at the time of the election, enacted as part of the 2020 redistricting cycle, compared to the map in place before the election.
Kentucky District 1
until January 2, 2023
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Kentucky District 1
starting January 3, 2023
Click a district to compare boundaries.
Effect of redistricting
The table below details the results of the 2020 presidential election in each district at the time of the 2022 election and its political predecessor district.[7] This data was compiled by Daily Kos Elections.[8]
| 2020 presidential results by Congressional district, Kentucky | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | 2022 district | Political predecessor district | ||
Joe Biden 
|
Donald Trump 
|
Joe Biden
|
Donald Trump
| |
| Kentucky's 1st | 27.9% | 70.6% | 25.5% | 73.1% |
| Kentucky's 2nd | 30.8% | 67.5% | 30.6% | 67.6% |
| Kentucky's 3rd | 60.2% | 37.9% | 60.0% | 38.1% |
| Kentucky's 4th | 32.8% | 65.4% | 33.4% | 64.7% |
| Kentucky's 5th | 19.7% | 79.1% | 18.6% | 80.1% |
| Kentucky's 6th | 43.5% | 54.5% | 44.5% | 53.6% |
Competitiveness
This section contains data on U.S. House primary election competitiveness in Kentucky.
Post-filing deadline analysis
The following analysis covers all U.S. House districts up for election in Kentucky in 2022. Information below was calculated on Feb. 22, 2022, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.
Thirty-one candidates filed to run for Kentucky's six U.S. House districts in 2022, including nine Democrats and 22 Republicans. This equals 5.2 candidates per district, the most candidates per district since 2014.
This was the first candidate filing deadline under new district lines adopted during the state's decennial redistricting process. Kentucky was apportioned six districts, the same number it received after the 2010 census.
One district—Kentucky's 3rd—was left open with Rep. John Yarmuth (D) retiring from politics. Yarmuth first won election in 2006 after defeating Rep. Anne Northup (R). The 2022 filing deadline marked the first time since 1994 that the district had been left open. The 3rd District drew the largest number of major party candidate filings overall: two Democrats and seven Republicans.
The remaining five incumbents—all Republicans—filed for re-election. Of those five, four drew primary challengers, the same number as 2020.
Eight of the 12 possible major party primaries (67%) drew more than one candidate leaving them contested. This represents more contested primaries than in 2020 and the same number as 2018.
Presidential elections
Partisan Voter Index
Heading into the 2022 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+24. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 24 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Kentucky's 1st the 14th most Republican district nationally.[9]
2020 presidential election results
The table below shows what the vote in the 2020 presidential election would have been in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by Daily Kos.
| 2020 presidential results in Kentucky's 1st based on 2022 district lines | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Biden
|
Donald Trump
| |||
| 27.9% | 70.6% | |||
Presidential voting history
- See also: Presidential election in Kentucky, 2020
Kentucky presidential election results (1900-2020)
- 16 Democratic wins
- 15 Republican wins
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | R | R | D | R | R | R | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Demographics
The table below details demographic data in Kentucky and compares it to the broader United States as of 2019.
| Demographic Data for Kentucky | ||
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | United States | |
| Population | 4,339,367 | 308,745,538 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 39,491 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 87% | 72.5% |
| Black/African American | 8.1% | 12.7% |
| Asian | 1.5% | 5.5% |
| Native American | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Other (single race) | 1% | 4.9% |
| Multiple | 2.3% | 3.3% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 3.7% | 18% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 86.3% | 88% |
| College graduation rate | 24.2% | 32.1% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $50,589 | $62,843 |
| Persons below poverty level | 17.3% | 13.4% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2010). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2014-2019). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
State party control
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Kentucky's congressional delegation as of November 2022.
| Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Kentucky, November 2022 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
| Democratic | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Republican | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vacancies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 6 | 8 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Kentucky's top four state executive offices as of November 2022.
| State executive officials in Kentucky, November 2022 | |
|---|---|
| Office | Officeholder |
| Governor | Andy Beshear
|
| Lieutenant Governor | Jacqueline Coleman
|
| Secretary of State | Michael Adams
|
| Attorney General | Daniel Cameron
|
State legislature
The tables below highlight the partisan composition of the Kentucky General Assembly as of November 2022.
Kentucky State Senate
| Party | As of November 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 8 | |
| Republican Party | 29 | |
| Vacancies | 1 | |
| Total | 38 | |
Kentucky House of Representatives
| Party | As of November 2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 25 | |
| Republican Party | 75 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 100 | |
Trifecta control
As of November 2022, Kentucky was a divided government, with Democrats controlling the governorship and Republican majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. The table below displays the historical trifecta status of the state.
Kentucky Party Control: 1992-2022
Eight years of Democratic trifectas • Three years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R |
District history
2020
See also: Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2020
Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2020 (June 23 Democratic primary)
Kentucky's 1st Congressional District election, 2020 (June 23 Republican primary)
General election
General election for U.S. House Kentucky District 1
Incumbent James Comer Jr. defeated James Rhodes in the general election for U.S. House Kentucky District 1 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | James Comer Jr. (R) | 75.0 | 246,329 |
| James Rhodes (D) | 25.0 | 82,141 | ||
| Total votes: 328,470 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. James Rhodes advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent James Comer Jr. advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1.
2018
General election
General election for U.S. House Kentucky District 1
Incumbent James Comer Jr. defeated Paul Walker in the general election for U.S. House Kentucky District 1 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | James Comer Jr. (R) | 68.6 | 172,167 |
 | Paul Walker (D) | 31.4 | 78,849 | |
| Total votes: 251,016 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1
Paul Walker defeated Alonzo Pennington in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1 on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Paul Walker | 81.2 | 75,148 |
 | Alonzo Pennington | 18.8 | 17,398 | |
| Total votes: 92,546 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1
Incumbent James Comer Jr. advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 1 on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | James Comer Jr. |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Kentucky's 1st Congressional District seat was left open following incumbent Ed Whitfield's decision to retire. James Comer (R) defeated Sam Gaskins (D) and Terry McIntosh (Write-in) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Comer defeated Jason Batts, Miles Caughey Jr., and Michael Pape in the Republican primary. On the other side of the aisle, Sam Gaskins ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. The primary elections took place on May 17, 2016.[10][11][12]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  James Comer |
72.6% | 216,959 | |
| Democratic | Sam Gaskins | 27.3% | 81,710 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0.1% | 332 | |
| Total Votes | 299,001 | |||
| Source: Kentucky Secretary of State | ||||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
James Comer |
60.6% | 24,342 | ||
| Michael Pape | 23.3% | 9,357 | ||
| Jason Batts | 13.9% | 5,578 | ||
| Miles Caughey | 2.2% | 896 | ||
| Total Votes | 40,173 | |||
| Source: Kentucky State Board of Elections |
||||
2014
The 1st Congressional District of Kentucky held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Ed Whitfield (R) defeated Charles Kendall Hatchett (D) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ed Whitfield Incumbent |
73.1% | 173,022 | |
| Democratic | Charles Kendall Hatchett | 26.9% | 63,596 | |
| Total Votes | 236,618 | |||
| Source: Kentucky Secretary of State | ||||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Charles Hatchett |
55.5% | 38,055 | ||
| Wesley Bolin | 44.5% | 30,528 | ||
| Total Votes | 68,583 | |||
| Source: Kentucky State Board of Elections |
||||
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Fundraising by primary candidates can be found on the race's respective primary election page. Fundraising by general election candidates can be found on the race's general election page.
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "2022 Quarterly Reports," accessed March 2, 2022
- ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
- ↑ Political predecessor districts are determined primarily based on incumbents and where each chose to seek re-election.
- ↑ Daily Kos Elections, "Daily Kos Elections 2020 presidential results by congressional district (old CDs vs. new CDs)," accessed May 17, 2022
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "The 2022 Cook Partisan Voting Index (Cook PVI℠)," accessed February 6, 2023
- ↑ Kentucky Secretary of State, "Candidate Filings with the Office of the Secretary of State," accessed January 27, 2016
- ↑ The New York Times, "Kentucky Results," May 17, 2016
- ↑ Kentucky Secretary of State, "Candidate Filings with the Office of the Secretary of State," accessed September 6, 2016
