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Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2020 (June 23 Democratic primary)

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Kentucky's 4th Congressional District
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: January 10, 2020
Primary: June 23, 2020
General: November 3, 2020
Pre-election incumbent:
Thomas Massie (Republican)
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, 2020
See also
Kentucky's 4th Congressional District
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th
Kentucky elections, 2020
U.S. Congress elections, 2020
U.S. Senate elections, 2020
U.S. House elections, 2020

A Democratic Party primary took place on June 23, 2020, in Kentucky's 4th Congressional District to determine which Democratic candidate would run in the district's general election on November 3, 2020.

Alexandra Owensby advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 4.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
January 10, 2020
June 23, 2020
November 3, 2020


Heading into the election, the incumbent was Thomas Massie (Republican), who was first elected in 2012.

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Kentucky utilizes a closed primary process, in which only registered party members can participate.[3]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

This page focuses on Kentucky's 4th Congressional District Democratic primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Republican primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Kentucky modified its primary election process as follows:

  • Election postponements: The primary election was postponed from May 19, 2020, to June 23.
  • Voting procedures: Absentee voting eligibility was extended to all voters in the primary election.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.


Candidates and election results

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Kentucky District 4

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Alexandra Owensby
Alexandra Owensby Candidate Connection
 
58.4
 
41,531
Image of Shannon Fabert
Shannon Fabert Candidate Connection
 
41.6
 
29,557

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 71,088
Candidate Connection = 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.

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles created in one of two ways. Either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey or Ballotpedia staff created a profile after identifying the candidate as noteworthy.[4] Ballotpedia staff compiled profiles based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements.

Shannon Fabert

Image of Shannon Fabert

WebsiteFacebookTwitter

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Shannon Fabert is a business process consultant who has been successful collaborating with companies of all sizes in a variety of industries and sectors. She has worked tirelessly to meet goals that improve the stakeholder environment, not just shareholders. Compassion and creative problem solving have been the cornerstones that built her winning track record of working with CEOs and front line workers to reach a common goal. It was her current representative's lack of action that pushed her into running for Congress. She believes elected officials are obligated to representing all of their constituents and working across the aisle for progress. Shannon is the oldest of 4 children born into a multicultural family; her father is of African American descent and her mother is a Filipino immigrant. She is the proud product of a public school education graduating from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 2001. Shannon lives in Boone County with her husband Greg and dog Hines."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

We need people in Congress who embrace the cycle of change, especially right now economically. I have always been focused on continuous improvement in my professional life. In that carreer I have real experience bringing about progressive change. We need the type of expertise that offers creative solutions and for entrepreneurs and blue collar workers to thrive.

Public education should be a right for every child. We need to put policy in the hands of educators who understand that we need. We also need new methods of preparing our children for 21st century challenges. Education needs to be as diverse as our children, where trade schools rival college as a successful path.

Health care is a fundamental right to every human being. In the preamble of the Constitution "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" are paramount. Universal healthcare fits every single word of that famous phrase. Every individual deserves the right to have access to quality health care, in an affordable private or public option.

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Kentucky District 4 in 2020.

Alexandra Owensby

Image of Alexandra Owensby

WebsiteFacebookTwitter

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Dr. Alexandra Owensby is not a politician. She is a single mother of two children who struggled to put herself through school to support her family. After leaving an abusive marriage, she put herself through three degrees to ultimately obtain her Doctorate of Nursing Practice to support herself and her children. Through that process she had to rely on public assistance, specifically, her children qualified for Medicaid. She became a nurse practitioner at the University of Cincinnati. The costs of obtaining this job were high. She was forced to take out student loans and was afraid it would be impossible for her to ever become financially secure. She has worked two to three jobs since getting her degree in order to make ends meet. Her journey through the depths of poverty and rising to the struggling middle class inspired her to get involved in politics. She believes that Kentucky needs a representative who understands the struggles of the working and middle class. She currently lives in Ft. Thomas with her two children. "

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

Every American deserves affordable, quality healthcare. As a nurse practitioner, I will fight every day to protect and expand healthcare access for all Americans.

Congress needs representatives who understand what working and middle class people go through to make ends meet. We need real representation in Washington that will protect the working and middle classes, regardless of race, gender, and education, instead of benefiting the wealthy who seek to divide us while they reap the benefits.

Now, more than ever, it is essential we elect women to the House and Senate to oppose the bills that are seeking to suppress women's rights. We need representatives that instead write legislation that furthers equality. In particular, we need mom's in Congress, less than 6% of Congress have given birth and understand the unique challenges faced by working mothers. We must pass the Equal Rights Amendment now!

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Kentucky District 4 in 2020.

District analysis

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index
See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores

The 2017 Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+18, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 18 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Kentucky's 4th Congressional District the 51st most Republican nationally.[5]

FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 0.88. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 0.88 points toward that party.[6]

Campaign finance

This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.[7] 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.[8] The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Shannon Fabert Democratic Party $35,216 $32,479 $2,737 As of June 3, 2020
Alexandra Owensby Democratic Party $166,563 $155,997 $9,933 As of December 31, 2020

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2020. 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."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.

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.[9]
  • 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.[10][11][12]

Race ratings: Kentucky's 4th Congressional District election, 2020
Race trackerRace ratings
November 3, 2020October 27, 2020October 20, 2020October 13, 2020
The Cook Political ReportSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every week throughout the election season.

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Note: Kentucky's primary election was postponed to June 23, 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
  2. ↑ Note: Kentucky's primary election was postponed to June 23, 2020, in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
  3. ↑ Kentucky General Assembly, "Ky. Rev. Stat. § 116.055," accessed October 20, 2025
  4. ↑ Candidate Connection surveys completed before September 26, 2019, were not used to generate candidate profiles. In battleground primaries, Ballotpedia based its selection of noteworthy candidates on polling, fundraising, and noteworthy endorsements. In battleground general elections, all major party candidates and any other candidates with the potential to impact the outcome of the race were included.
  5. ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
  6. ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
  7. ↑ 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.
  8. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "2022 Quarterly Reports," accessed March 2, 2022
  9. ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  10. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  11. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  12. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018


Kentucky's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Mitch McConnell (R)
Rand Paul (R)
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
Andy Barr (R)
Republican Party (7)
Democratic Party (1)


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