2018 Kentucky Senate election

Last updated

2018 Kentucky Senate election
Flag of Kentucky.svg
←  2016 November 6, 2018 2020  →
19 out of 38 seats in the Kentucky Senate
20 seats needed for a majority
 Majority partyMinority party
  3x4.svg Ray S. Jones.jpg
Leader Robert Stivers Ray Jones
Party Republican Democratic
Leader sinceJanuary 8, 2013January 6, 2015
Leader's seat 25th – Manchester 31st – Pikeville
Last election2711
Seats won2810
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 1Decrease2.svg 1
Seats up163
Races won172
2018 Kentucky Senate election.svg
2018 Kentucky Senate election popular vote.svg
Results:
     Republican hold     Republican gain
     Democratic hold     No election
Popular vote:
     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     >90%
     50–60%     >90%
Senate President before election

Robert Stivers
Republican

Elected Senate President

Robert Stivers
Republican

The 2018 Kentucky Senate election was held on November 6, 2018. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were held on May 22. Half of the senate (all even-numbered seats) were up for election. Republicans increased their majority in the chamber, gaining one seat.

Contents

A numbered map of the senate districts at the time can be viewed here.

Overview

Kentucky Senate diagram, 2018 election.svg
PartyCandidatesVotes%Seats
OpposedUnopposedBeforeWonAfter+/−
Republican 180468,53057.93271728+1
Democratic 161325,80040.2911210-1
Independent 2010,9461.35000-
Write-in 203,4540.43000-
Total381808,730100.00381938±0
Source: Kentucky Secretary of State

Retiring incumbents

One senator retired, who did not run for another office.

  1. 8th: Joe Bowen (Owensboro) retired. [1]

Incumbents defeated

One incumbent lost reelection in the general election.

  1. 4th: J. Dorsey Ridley (first elected in 2004) lost to Robert M. "Robby" Mills.

Summary by district

Certified results by the Kentucky Secretary of State are available online for the primary election and general election.

† – Incumbent not seeking re-election

District Incumbent PartyElectedParty
2 Danny Carroll Rep Danny Carroll Rep
4 J. Dorsey Ridley Dem Robert M. "Robby" Mills Rep
6 C. B. Embry Jr. Rep C. B. Embry Jr. Rep
8 Joe Bowen†Rep Matt Castlen Rep
10 Dennis L. Parrett Dem Dennis L. Parrett Dem
12 Alice Forgy Kerr Rep Alice Forgy Kerr Rep
14 Jimmy Higdon Rep Jimmy Higdon Rep
16 George Maxwell "Max" Wise Rep George Maxwell "Max" Wise Rep
18 Robin L. Webb Dem Robin L. Webb Dem
20 Paul R. Hornback Rep Paul R. Hornback Rep
22 Tom Buford Rep Tom Buford Rep
24 Wil Schroder Rep Wil Schroder Rep
26 Ernie Harris Rep Ernie Harris Rep
28 Ralph Alvarado Rep Ralph Alvarado Rep
30 Brandon Smith Rep Brandon Smith Rep
32 Mike Wilson Rep Mike Wilson Rep
34 Jared K. Carpenter Rep Jared K. Carpenter Rep
36 Julie Raque Adams Rep Julie Raque Adams Rep
38 Dan Malano Seum Rep Dan Malano Seum Rep

Crossover seats

Democratic

Three districts voted for Donald Trump in 2016 but had Democratic incumbents:

DistrictIncumbent
#Trump margin of
victory in 2016		MemberPartyIncumbent margin
of victory in 2014
4R+44.38 J. Dorsey Ridley DemocraticUnopposed
10R+30.39 Dennis L. Parrett DemocraticUnopposed
18R+43.15 Robin L. Webb DemocraticD+25.37

Republican

None.

Closest races

Seats where the margin of victory was under 10%:

  1. District 4, 1.29% (gain)
  2. District 12, 1.46%
  3. District 32, 4.66%
  4. District 26, 5.42%
  5. District 28, 6.71%
  6. District 36, 6.74%

District 2

Incumbent senator Danny Carroll won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Julie Tennyson.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Julie Tennyson

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Carroll 60-70% 2018 Kentucky Senate 2nd district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Carroll
  •   60–70%
2018 Kentucky Senate 2nd district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Danny Carroll (incumbent) 28,252 63.2
Democratic Julie Tennyson16,42836.8
Total votes44,680 100.0
Republican hold

District 4

Incumbent senator J. Dorsey Ridley was defeated for reelection by Republican Robert M. "Robby" Mills.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: Mills 50-60% 60-70% Ridley 50-60% 2018 Kentucky Senate 4th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Mills
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  Ridley
  •   50–60%
2018 Kentucky Senate 4th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Robert M. "Robby" Mills 19,057 50.6
Democratic J. Dorsey Ridley (incumbent)18,57349.4
Total votes37,630 100.0
Republican gain from Democratic
Results by county
CountyRobert M. "Robby" MillsJ. Dorsey RidleyMarginTotal
votes
# %# %#%
Caldwell 2,66053.532,30946.473517.064,969
Crittenden 2,14463.751,21936.2592527.513,363
Henderson 6,58643.038,71856.97-2,132-13.9315,304
Livingston 2,21658.151,59541.8562116.293,811
Union 3,02853.232,66146.773676.455,689
Webster 2,42353.922,07146.083527.834,494
Total19,05750.6418,57349.364841.2937,630

District 6

Incumbent senator C. B. Embry Jr. won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Crystal Chappell.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Crystal Chappell

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: Embry 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% 2018 Kentucky Senate 6th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Embry
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
  •   80–90%
2018 Kentucky Senate 6th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican C. B. Embry Jr. (incumbent) 27,139 67.2
Democratic Crystal Chappell13,21732.8
Total votes40,356 100.0
Republican hold

District 8

Incumbent senator Joe Bowen did not seek reelection. [1] He was succeeded by Republican Matt Castlen.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Bob Glenn

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Matt Castlen, representative from the 14th district (2017–2019)
Eliminated in primary
  • Dianne Burns Mackey

Results

Republican primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Matt Castlen 4,530 65.0
Republican Dianne Burns Mackey2,44135.0
Total votes6,971 100.0

General election

Results

Results by county: Castlen 50-60% 60-70% 2018 Kentucky Senate 8th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Castlen
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
2018 Kentucky Senate 8th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Matt Castlen 25,107 58.2
Democratic Bob Glenn18,01941.8
Total votes43,126 100.0
Republican hold

District 10

Incumbent senator Dennis L. Parrett won reelection unopposed.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 10th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Dennis L. Parrett (incumbent) Unopposed
Total votes24,224 100.0
Democratic hold

District 12

Incumbent senator Alice Forgy Kerr won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Paula Setser-Kissick.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Paula Setser-Kissick

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 12th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Alice Forgy Kerr (incumbent) 26,874 50.7
Democratic Paula Setser-Kissick26,10249.3
Total votes52,976 100.0
Republican hold

District 14

Incumbent senator Jimmy Higdon won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Stephanie Compton.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Stephanie Compton

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: Higdon 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% 2018 Kentucky Senate 14th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Higdon
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
  •   80–90%
2018 Kentucky Senate 14th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Jimmy Higdon (incumbent) 29,752 65.3
Democratic Stephanie Compton15,84234.7
Total votes45,594 100.0
Republican hold

District 16

Incumbent senator George Maxwell "Max" Wise won reelection, defeating write-in candidate Nicole Britton.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 16th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican George Maxwell "Max" Wise (incumbent) 33,447 96.7
Write-in Nicole Britton1,1253.3
Total votes34,572 100.0
Republican hold

District 18

Incumbent senator Robin L. Webb won reelection, defeating primary and general election challengers.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Chester Chuck Highley

Results

Democratic primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Robin L. Webb (incumbent) 10,543 86.7
Democratic Chester Chuck Highley1,62313.3
Total votes12,166 100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: Webb 50-60% 60-70% 2018 Kentucky Senate 18th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Webb
  •   50–60%
  •   60–70%
2018 Kentucky Senate 18th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Robin L. Webb (incumbent) 21,644 57.8
Republican Scott L. Sharp 15,82342.2
Total votes37,467 100.0
Democratic hold

District 20

Incumbent senator Paul R. Hornback won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Dave Suetholz.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Dave Suetholz

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 20th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Paul R. Hornback (incumbent) 25,775 56.5
Democratic Dave Suetholz19,82943.5
Total votes45,604 100.0
Republican hold

District 22

Incumbent senator Tom Buford won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Carolyn Dupont.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Carolyn Dupont

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 22nd district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Tom Buford (incumbent) 28,537 66.0
Democratic Carolyn Dupont14,69234.0
Total votes43,229 100.0
Republican hold

District 24

Incumbent senator Wil Schroder won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Rachel Roberts.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: Schroder 50-60% 70-80% 2018 Kentucky Senate 24th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Schroder
  •   50–60%
  •   70–80%
2018 Kentucky Senate 24th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Wil Schroder (incumbent) 23,705 56.9
Democratic Rachel Roberts 17,95843.1
Total votes41,663 100.0
Republican hold

District 26

Incumbent senator Ernie Harris won reelection, defeating primary and general election challengers.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Matt Kaufmann

Results

Democratic primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Karen Berg 7,112 67.3
Democratic Matt Kaufmann3,45132.7
Total votes10,563 100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Alex R. White

Results

Republican primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Ernie Harris (incumbent) 5,193 52.2
Republican Alex R. White4,75047.8
Total votes9,943 100.0

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 26th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Ernie Harris (incumbent) 29,625 51.8
Democratic Karen Berg 26,52446.3
Independent Jody Hurt1,0781.9
Total votes57,227 100.0
Republican hold

District 28

Incumbent senator Ralph Alvarado won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Denise Gray.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Denise Gray

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 28th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Ralph Alvarado (incumbent) 23,212 53.4
Democratic Denise Gray20,29146.6
Total votes43,503 100.0
Republican hold

District 30

Incumbent senator Brandon Smith won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Paula Clemons-Combs.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Paula Clemons-Combs

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

Results by county: Smith 60-70% 70-80% 80-90% Clemons-Combs 50-60% 2018 Kentucky Senate 30th district election results map by county.svg
Results by county:
  Smith
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
  •   80–90%
  Clemons-Combs
  •   50–60%
2018 Kentucky Senate 30th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Brandon Smith (incumbent) 27,747 73.2
Democratic Paula Clemons-Combs10,15126.8
Total votes37,898 100.0
Republican hold

District 32

Incumbent senator Mike Wilson won reelection, defeating primary and general election challengers.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Jeanie Smith

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Darrell Traughber

Results

Republican primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Mike Wilson (incumbent) 4,877 60.8
Republican Darrell Traughber3,15039.2
Total votes8,027 100.0

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 32nd district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Mike Wilson (incumbent) 20,803 52.3
Democratic Jeanie Smith18,95247.7
Total votes39,755 100.0
Republican hold

District 34

Incumbent senator Jared K. Carpenter won reelection, defeating Democratic candidate Susan Byrne Haddix.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Susan Byrne Haddix

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 34th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Jared K. Carpenter (incumbent) 28,145 61.8
Democratic Susan Byrne Haddix17,37738.2
Total votes45,522 100.0
Republican hold

District 36

Incumbent senator Julie Raque Adams won reelection, defeating primary and general election challengers.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee
  • Sheri A. Donahue
Eliminated in primary
  • Gay Adelmann

Results

Democratic primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Sheri A. Donahue 5,694 56.2
Democratic Gay Adelmann4,44243.8
Total votes10,136 100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Sheeba Jolly

Results

Republican primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Julie Raque Adams (incumbent) 5,800 90.3
Republican Sheeba Jolly6229.7
Total votes6,422 100.0

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 36th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Julie Raque Adams (incumbent) 29,729 53.4
Democratic Sheri A. Donahue25,97746.6
Total votes55,706 100.0
Republican hold

District 38

Incumbent senator Dan Malano Seum won reelection, defeating primary and general election challengers.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee
Eliminated in primary
  • Paul Wesley Ham

Results

Republican primary results
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Dan Malano Seum (incumbent) 3,712 57.1
Republican Paul Wesley Ham2,78742.9
Total votes6,499 100.0

General election

Results

2018 Kentucky Senate 38th district election
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Dan Malano Seum (incumbent) 25,801 67.9
Independent Brenda Sue "Susie" Board9,86826.0
Write-in Andrew Bailey2,3296.1
Total votes37,998 100.0
Republican hold

References

  1. 1 2 Schimmel, Becca (January 15, 2018). "Sen. Joe Bowen Won't Seek Re-election". WKMS. Retrieved May 7, 2024.

See also

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