Sen. Mitch McConnell and Democratic challenger Alison Lundergan Grimes are gearing up for their only statewide televised debate Monday.
Apart from a joint appearance earlier this year at the annual Fancy Farm picnic, Monday night's debate on KET will be voters’ only chance to see the two candidates sharing the same stage – and both are likely to be pressed for answers to questions raised in their respective ads.
The McConnell campaign has seized on Grimes' recent refusal to say whom she voted for in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections. She could also face questions about her level of commitment to coal and her opposition to new EPA emissions standards backed by the Obama administration.
And while her opponent has 30 years of experience from which to draw in tonight’s debate, he also has a longer record to defend.
Past votes against raising the minimum wage, a recent student loan reform package, and the Democrats' equal pay for women bill could be fodder for Grimes as she seeks to paint the five-term senator as out of touch.
Tonight on the KET forum hosted by Bill Goodman, each will finally be asked to respond in real time, and with the polls continuing to show a tight race, both camps know a lot could be riding on the answers.
The forum gets under way Monday at 8 on KET. You can hear a re-broadcast of the debate Tuesday afternoon on WUKY HD-2 at 5 p.m.