In House District 95, Democrats still heavily outweigh Republicans in registrations — but that’s not uncommon in eastern Kentucky. In a few surrounding districts, more than half of registered voters identify as Democrats, yet they are all represented by Republicans in the state House of Representatives (see Districts 92, 94 and 84).
In fact, Rep. Ashley Tackett Laferty is the last House Democrat standing in eastern Kentucky. Despite the trends in her part of the state, Tackett Laferty has held onto her seat for three terms, winning by significant margins each time. This year will be a rematch between Tackett Laferty and GOP challenger Brandon Spencer, a former Democrat who served in the seat for just one year nearly two decades ago. Spencer ran against Tackett Lafferty in 2022 as well, but lost by a nearly 20 percentage point margin.
Spencer is counting on excitement around the presidential election to sway the district, which voted by a large margin for former President Donald Trump in 2020. However the district also voted to reelect Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear last year by about 1,200 votes.
Here’s what you need to know about the two candidates.
Read the rest at Louisville Public Media.
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