Kentucky Politics

Republicans maintained their supermajorities in Kentucky's Legislature on Tuesday as suburban GOP incumbents won in neighborhoods that Democrats targeted in hopes of capitalizing on the popularity Gov. Andy Beshear commanded during his reelection a year ago.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear's efforts to land the No. 2 spot on the Democratic presidential ticket drew ridicule from prominent Republicans during the Bluegrass State's premiere political event on Saturday.

The 144th annual Fancy Farm picnic takes place this Saturday at Saint Jerome’s Catholic Parish in Western Kentucky and in addition to the bingo and barbecue comes the at-times bombastic political speechifying. In this special edition of WUKY's Capitol Chat we discuss a number of story lines behind the scenes with the editor and publisher of the Frankfort based Kentucky Gazette, Laura Cullen Glasscock.

The deadline for candidates to file to run in this year’s elections has now come and gone and already it’s been an interesting start to the legislative session in Frankfort. Kentucky Gazette editor and publisher Laura Cullen Glasscock returns for some expert analysis on Kentucky's political scene.

Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams called on Bluegrass State policymakers to promote a “tolerant and welcoming society” as he joined four fellow Republicans for their public swearing-in ceremony Tuesday as they started their terms as statewide officeholders.

In front of a raucous crowd at Kentucky's premier political event on Saturday, the Democratic incumbent Governor Andy Beshear talked about the state's high-flying economy while his Republican challenger, Attorney General Daniel Cameron hammered away on social issues.

The political epicenter of state politics will be in Graves County, Kentucky this Saturday at the annual Fancy Farm Picnic; a fundraiser for Saint Jerome’s Parish. And this event comes in the midst of a hotly contested gubernatorial campaign. Kentucky Gazette editor and publisher Laura Cullen Glasscock plans to be in the crowd this year and she talked about what she'll be watching for.

This past legislative session the General Assembly passed a bill legalizing the sale and use of medicinal cannabis under certain conditions. This landmark legislation represented a turning point in Kentucky politics and called to mind the many efforts of Gatewood Galbraith. The colorful and seemingly perennial candidate was a vocal proponent for full-on legalization. In this installment of WUKY’s award winning history series Saving Stories. Doug Boyd from UK Libraries’ Nunn Center shares audio from a 1990 interview with Galbraith where the well-known defense attorney and cannabis activist lays out his reasoning and offers up his overall positive vision for the future of the state.

WUKY's Award winning history series Saving Stories celebrates Women's History Month. Nunn Center Director Doug Boyd shares audio from a rare oral history interview with Martha Layne Collins; the only woman ever to be elected governor of Kentucky. She talks about her approach to the office, convincing Japanese automaker Toyota to build a plant in Georgetown and how she hoped Kentuckians would look back on her time as governor. Saving Stories is a collaboration between WUKY and the Louie B. Nunn for Oral History in the UK Libraries.

The first four legislative days of the thirty-day session are in the books and lawmakers in Frankfort will now take a break before coming back next month. What was the first week of January like for a reporter covering state government? Laura Cullen Glasscock, the editor and publisher of the Frankfort-based Kentucky Gazette joins Alan Lytle for the first edition of Capitol Chat for 2023. They talk about major legislative priorities for the GOP dominated General Assembly, recap Governor Andy Beshear's annual State of the Commonwealth address, and discuss the bizarre way in which former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin let us all know he's not running for the office this year.