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United States Senate election in Kentucky, 2016
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Presidential • U.S. Senate • U.S. House • State Senate • State House • State judges • Local judges • State ballot measures • School boards • Municipal • Candidate ballot access |
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November 8, 2016 |
May 17, 2016 |
Rand Paul  |
Rand Paul |
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Cook Political Report: Solid R[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe R[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe R[3] |
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Voters in Kentucky elected one member to the U.S. Senate in the election on November 8, 2016.
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated Kentucky's U.S. Senate race as safely Republican. Incumbent Rand Paul (R) defeated Jim Gray (D) and Billy Ray Wilson (Write-in) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Paul defeated James Gould and Stephen Howard Slaughter in the Republican primary, while Gray defeated six other challengers to win the Democratic nomination. The primary elections took place on May 17, 2016.[4][5][6]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: 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 the selection of a party's candidates in an election is limited to registered party members.[7][8][9]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Incumbent: The election filled the Class 3 Senate seat held by Rand Paul (R). He was first elected in 2010.
Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Rand Paul Incumbent |
57.3% | 1,090,177 | |
| Democratic | Jim Gray | 42.7% | 813,246 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0% | 42 | |
| Total Votes | 1,903,465 | |||
| Source: Kentucky Secretary of State | ||||
Primary election
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Rand Paul Incumbent |
84.8% | 169,180 | ||
| James Gould | 8.3% | 16,611 | ||
| Stephen Slaughter | 6.9% | 13,728 | ||
| Total Votes | 199,519 | |||
| Source: Kentucky State Board of Elections |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Jim Gray |
58.7% | 240,598 | ||
| Sellus Wilder | 12.9% | 52,729 | ||
| Ron Leach | 9.5% | 39,026 | ||
| Tom Recktenwald | 5.3% | 21,910 | ||
| Grant Short | 5.3% | 21,558 | ||
| Jeff Kender | 4.9% | 20,237 | ||
| Rory Houlihan | 3.3% | 13,585 | ||
| Total Votes | 409,643 | |||
| Source: Kentucky State Board of Elections |
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Candidates
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General election candidates: Rand Paul  Jim Gray Billy Ray Wilson (Write-in) |
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Primary candidates:[10] |
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Democratic Rory Houlihan[4] Jeff Kender[12] Ron Leach[4] Tom Recktenwald[4] Grant Short[4] Sellus Wilder[4] |
Republican James Gould[4] Stephen Howard Slaughter[4] |
Race background
Rand Paul's dual candidacy
Incumbent Rand Paul (R) announced he would seek re-election to his U.S. Senate seat in December of 2014.[13] Paul also ran for the 2016 Presidential election. Kentucky law prohibits candidates from appearing twice on a ballot, meaning that if Paul became the Republican presidential nominee, he could not run for President and his senate seat simultaneously.[14] In March 2014, the Kentucky State Senate passed a bill that would have allowed Paul to run for both offices; however, the bill did not make it through the Democratic-controlled Kentucky House of Representatives.[15][16]
On August 22, 2015, state Republicans voted to switch from a presidential primary to a presidential caucus, allowing Paul to seek re-election and continue his presidential bid. The only condition was that Paul was required to transfer $250,000 to the state GOP to pay for the caucus, otherwise the state would revert to a presidential primary system.[17] Paul did provide the money as was agreed on September 18, 2015, making the party's switch to a caucus official.[18]
Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes criticized the Republican Party's decision. She said, "It is unfortunate that today a few insiders were able to disenfranchise over 1.2 million Republican voters. One candidate should not be able to buy an election. Democracy demands that all eligible Kentuckians be a part of the election process. That didn't happen today and won't happen with a caucus."[17]
Paul ultimately suspended his presidential campaign on February 3, 2016, following the Iowa caucus.[19]
Endorsements
- Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY): "I am proud to support my friend Rand Paul for his re-election to the U.S. Senate. Rand has been an irreplaceable partner in fighting for Kentucky priorities and Kentucky values. His innovative mind for conservative reforms that create jobs and get the economy working again is essential in the U.S. Senate as we seek to reverse Obama policies that have hurt Kentucky families.”[20]
Media
Jim Gray
Support
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Opposition
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Election history
2014
On November 4, 2014, incumbent Mitch McConnell (R) defeated challengers Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) and David Patterson (L) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mitch McConnell Incumbent |
56.2% | 806,787 | |
| Democratic | Alison Lundergan Grimes | 40.7% | 584,698 | |
| Libertarian | David Patterson | 3.1% | 44,240 | |
| Total Votes | 1,435,725 | |||
| Source: Kentucky Secretary of State | ||||
2010
On November 2, 2012, Rand Paul (R) defeated Jack Conway (D) and Billy Ray Wilson (I) in the general election.
| U.S. Senate, Kentucky General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Rand Paul |
55.7% | 755,706 | |
| Democratic | Jack Conway | 44.2% | 600,052 | |
| Independent | Billy Ray Wilson | 0% | 338 | |
| Total Votes | 1,356,096 | |||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Kentucky elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Kentucky in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| January 26, 2016 | Ballot access | Candidate filing deadline for candidates running in the primary election | |
| April 1, 2016 | Ballot access | Deadline for independent, political organization and political group candidates to file statements of candidacy (federal candidates and municipal candidates of cities in the second to sixth classes) | |
| August 9, 2016 | Ballot access | Candidate deadline for filing petitions, certificates, or statements | |
| April 15, 2016 | Campaign finance | 32-day pre-primary report due | |
| May 2, 2016 | Campaign finance | 15-day pre-primary report due | |
| May 17, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| June 16, 2016 | Campaign finance | 30-day post-primary report due | |
| July 16, 2016 | Campaign finance | 60-day post-primary report due | |
| October 7, 2016 | Campaign finance | 32-day pre-general report due | |
| October 24, 2016 | Campaign finance | 15-day pre-general report due | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| December 8, 2016 | Campaign finance | 30-day post-general report due | |
| January 7, 2017 | Campaign finance | 60-day post-general report due | |
| Sources: Kentucky State Board of Elections, "2016 Kentucky Election Calendar," accessed June 12, 2016 Kentucky Registry of Election Finance, "Candidate Reporting Dates," accessed June 12, 2015 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky, 2016
- United States Senate elections, 2016
- Rand Paul
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2016 Senate Race Ratings for July 11, 2016," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 Senate," accessed July 18, 2016
- ↑ Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "Senate Ratings," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 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
- ↑ NCSL,"State Primary Election Types," February 06, 2024
- ↑ Ballotpedia research conducted December 26, 2013, through January 3, 2014, researching and analyzing various state websites and codes.
- ↑ Kentucky State Board of Elections,"Key Information," accessed July 26, 2024
- ↑ Candidates are listed by party and alphabetically within each party.
- ↑ AP, "Democratic mayor to challenge GOP's Rand Paul in Senate race ," January 26, 2016
- ↑ Kender 4 Senate, "Home," accessed January 4, 2016
- ↑ USA Today Politics, "Rand Paul running for Senate and maybe president in 2016," December 2, 2014
- ↑ Washington Post, "In SOTU rebuttal, Rand Paul outlines 2016 vision," January 20, 2015
- ↑ Kentucky.com, "Kentucky Senate passes bill to let Rand Paul run for re-election and president in 2016," March 18, 2014
- ↑ CNN, "Dead for now: Kentucky bill allowing twin Paul 2016 runs," April 17, 2014
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Kentucky.com, "Kentucky Republicans vote to give Rand Paul a caucus, if the money is there," August 22, 2015
- ↑ WPSD Local 6, "Kentucky Republicans confirm 2016 presidential caucus," September 18, 2015
- ↑ CN2, "Rand Paul suspends presidential campaign," February 3, 2016
- ↑ Rand Paul for U.S. Senate, 2016, "Rand Paul to Seek Re-Election to U.S. Senate," accessed December 19, 2014
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see: Public policy in the 2016 elections!
