Kentucky Gubernatorial Election on Tuesday

On Tuesday, May 22, the voters of Kentucky will go to the polls to elect their party's nominee for governor in November.

The Republicans are bemoaned by the current governor, Ernie Fletcher, who is running for re-election. After years of scandal and failed state policies, Fletcher's campaign is going all the way up-hill, because of his unsuccessful tenure. Other Republicans, like Billy Harper and Anne Northup, are running expensive campaigns to win the top Republican spot.

Either way, state newspapers are not focusing their collective attention on the Republican race, but rather the Democratic one.

Democrats have a crowded field of six candidates for governor. These range from the absurd, like Otis "Bullman" Hensley, to the well-financed candidates, such as Bruce Lunsford.

Many political pundits agree that the Democratic race will end up in a runoff election between the two top contenders, because no single candidate can garner the 40% of votes this Tuesday.

A new Bluegrass Poll shows former Democratic lieutenant governor, Steve Beshear, who served under Governor Martha Layne Collins, from 1983-1987, as leading the pack of his party's hopefuls. It is likely that if Beshear wins, he will go on to face Fletcher (who now leads the field of Republicans, according to the same poll) in November's general election.