Kentucky is electing more than just governor in 2023. Meet the down-ballot candidates

Tessa Duvall
·5 min read

With more than a dozen candidates running to be Kentucky’s next governor, it’d be easy to forget there are several other races on the ballot in 2023.

Kentuckians will also elect its other constitutional officers — attorney general, treasurer, auditor, secretary of state and agriculture commissioner — next year.

These down-ballot races may not garner the same level of attention as Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s effort to secure a second term against a yet-to-be determined Republican challenger, but these offices can act a springboard for future gubernatorial hopefuls.

Indeed, three of the Republican candidates for governor are current constitutional officers: Attorney General Daniel Cameron, Commissioner of Agriculture Ryan Quarles and Auditor Mike Harmon.

Jan. 6 is the filing deadline for any candidate seeking statewide office next year, so this list may be updated in the month ahead.

Here’s a complete list of everyone running for these key offices in 2023.

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Attorney General

The attorney general is Kentucky’s chief law enforcement officer. Cameron, the incumbent, is not seeking a second term in office, instead opting to run for governor.

Seeking to replace him are:

Russell Coleman, a Republican, is the former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky in Louisville from 2017 to 2021. An appointee of former President Donald Trump, Coleman has campaigned on the promise to “Make America Safe Again.” Coleman was born and raised in Western Kentucky and worked as a special agent for the FBI, served as legal counsel to U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and worked at the Louisville law firm Frost Brown Todd, where he is again in private practice. His campaign website touts him as a “pro-life, pro-gun, pro-freedom” conservative.

State Rep. Pam Stevenson, a Louisville Democrat, has served in the Kentucky House of Representatives since 2021. A retired Air Force colonel, Stevenson has pointed to her experience as an attorney at the federal level, having served as a chief prosecutor, criminal defense attorney and an “operations law expert supporting aircrews with over 1,000 sorties over Iraq.” She has also a background as a non-profit leader and a Baptist minister.

Treasurer

The treasurer is Kentucky’s chief financial officer. The commonwealth’s current treasurer, Allison Ball, is term-limited after having served eight years in office.

Running to succeed Ball is:

OJ Oleka is a Frankfort native who worked as a deputy treasurer under Ball for three years. Oleka received his undergraduate degree from the University of Louisville and went on to earn his master’s and doctoral degrees from Bellarmine University. He later became President of the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities. The son of Nigerian immigrants, Oleka says he is running so that “every family has access to opportunity and prosperity” in Kentucky.

Andrew Cooperrider rose to prominence when he defied COVID-19 restrictions on his Lexington coffee shop. Since then, he ran against state Sen. Donald Douglas, R-Nicholasville, in a heated 2022 primary. Cooperrider is affiliated with the ‘Liberty’ wing of the Republican party and campaigned for the state Senate on the platform of making government smaller and spending as little money as possible.

No Democrats have filed to run for treasurer at this time.

Secretary of State

The Secretary of State is Kentucky’s chief elections official and chair of the State Board of Elections. Kentucky businesses must also register with the secretary’s office.

The candidates for secretary of state are:

Michael Adams is the current secretary of state and is seeking a second term in office. Adams has advocated for a number of election reforms while in office, including the creation of no-excuse early voting, and has fought misinformation about election integrity from within his own party — both of which have given him an across-the-aisle appeal. He often says his goal is to make it “easy to vote and hard to cheat.”

Allen Maricle was a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives in the 1990s. Maricle has endorsed Trump’s bid for the White House in 2024, and has accused McConnell of “meddling” in the secretary of state’s race to see Adams re-elected. Maricle has suggested that pandemic-era voting changes were “possibly in violation of state law” and has called for the end of ballot drop-boxes. He has not raised any money, according to the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance.

No Democrats have filed to run for secretary of state at this time.

Auditor

The auditor of public accounts — often simply referred to as the ‘auditor’ — is responsible for auditing all state agencies and county governments.

Harmon, the incumbent, served two terms in that role and is now running for governor.

The auditor candidates are:

Allison Ball, a Republican, is now running for auditor after serving two terms as treasurer. A Floyd County native and University of Kentucky law graduate, Ball has practiced bankruptcy law and also worked as a an assistant county attorney. In 2018, Ball became the first constitutional officer in Kentucky history to give birth while holding elected office.

Kimberley Reeder, a Democrat, is a tax attorney. A resident of Franklin County, Reeder has raised more than $28,000 for her campaign.

Commissioner of Agriculture

The commissioner of agriculture is the head of the Department of Agriculture, which aims to promote the interests of agriculture and horticulture in Kentucky.

Ryan Quarles, a Republican, has served two terms as the agriculture commissioner and is now running for governor.

The candidates for this office are:

Jonathan Shell, a Republican, was once House GOP Floor Leader and has served as McConnell’s campaign chairman. He is a fifth-generation farmer from Garrard County. He has raised nearly $300,000 for his campaign.

State Rep. Richard Heath, R-Mayfield, narrowly lost to Quarles in the 2015 GOP primary for agriculture commissioner. He has been a state representative for a decade and is the current chair of the House Agriculture Committee. He has raised more than $45,000 to support his campaign.

No Democrats have filed to run for commissioner of agriculture at this time.

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