2003 Kentucky gubernatorial election

none January 2025 September 2023 2003 Kentucky gubernatorial election Kentucky presidential no 1999 Kentucky gubernatorial election 1999 2007 Kentucky gubernatorial election 2007 November 4, 2003 40.2% ( 16.6%) File: Ernie Fletcher, official portrait (107th Congress) (cropped).jpg 150x150px Ernie Fletcher Republican Party (United States) 596,284 55.04% Steve Pence File:A.B. Chandler (1).jpg Ben Chandler Democratic Party (United States) 487,159 44.96% Charlie Owen 300px County results 300px Congressional district results 1 300px Fletcher: #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #d72f30 70–80% #c21b18 80–90%Chandler: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% Governor Paul E. Patton Democratic Party (United States) Ernie Fletcher Republican Party (United States) The 2003 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held to elect the Governor of Kentucky on November 4, 2003. Republican candidate Ernie Fletcher defeated Democrat Ben Chandler and became the first Republican governor of Kentucky in 36 years. http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2003/11/05/loc_kynkyresults05k.html N.Ky. key to victory for Fletcher 2008-05-18 2003-11-05 The Cincinnati Enquirer Chandler was later elected to Congress in a 2004 special election in Kentucky's 6th congressional district and held that seat until January 2013. Democratic primary Candidates Declared Ben Chandler - Kentucky Attorney General, 1995–present; former Kentucky Auditor of Public Accounts, 1991–1995. Running mate: Charlie Owen, Louisville entrepreneur; former head of the Kentucky Crime Commission, 1969–1973; candidate in 1998 U.S. Senate race in Kentucky who received 29% of the vote in the primary. Jody Richards – State Representative, 1975–2019 (Speaker of the House, 1996–2009). Running mate: Tony Miller, Jefferson County Circuit Court Clerk, 1988–2006. Otis Hensley – Private contractor from Wallins Creek, Kentucky. Running mate: Richard Robbins Withdrawn Bruce Lunsford – Louisville businessman; former Kentucky Secretary of Commerce, 1981–1983 Running mate: Barbara Edelman, litigation lawyer; former Assistant Kentucky Attorney General, 1977–1979; former Assistant U.S. Attorney for Eastern District of Kentucky Campaign Incumbent Democratic Governor Paul E. Patton was term limited from seeking a third term of office and was facing investigations after admitting to an affair. This led to the other Democratic candidates distancing themselves from him. https://www.foxnews.com/story/fletcher-chandler-win-nominations-for-kentucky-governor Fletcher, Chandler Win Nominations for Kentucky Governor 2008-05-18 2003-05-20 Fox News Channel State Attorney General Ben Chandler won the primary narrowly defeating the Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives Jody Richards, whose running mate was Tony Miller. He had led in the polls for several months before the primary. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/washington-wrap-21-05-2003/ Washington Wrap 2008-05-18 2003-05-20 CBS News Earlier businessman Bruce Lunsford had dropped out of the primary after Chandler launched adverts talking of abuse at nursing homes run by Lunsford's company. Lunsford had spent 8 million dollars of his own money during the primary campaign and after his withdrawal backed Richards against Chandler and said he would vote against Chandler in the general election if he won the primary. Results thumb|300px|Primary results by county: Chandler #001044 Chandler—81-90% #011966 Chandler—71-80% #0030c0 Chandler—61-70% #154bef Chandler—51-60% #4872f1 Chandler—41-50% Richards #011e01 Richards—81-90% #002400 Richards—71-80% #003900 Richards—61-70% #006400 Richards—51-60% #59d622 Richards—41-50% Democratic primary resultshttp://www.elect.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/E499252E-95D3-46F1-8602-289191464BC1/0/state.txt Kentucky State Board of Elections Welcome to the State Board of Elections Elect.ky.gov 2012-08-18 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20101111221736/http://elect.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/E499252E-95D3-46F1-8602-289191464BC1/0/state.txt November 11, 2010 Ben Chandler Charlie Owen Democratic Party (United States) 143,150 50.20% Jody Richards Tony Miller Democratic Party (United States) 132,627 46.51% Otis Hensley Jr. Richard Robbins Democratic Party (United States) 9,372 3.29% 285,149 100.00% Republican primary Candidates Declared Ernie Fletcher - U.S. Representative for Kentucky's 6th congressional district, 1999–2003; former State Representative, 1995–1997. Running mate: Steve Pence, former U.S. Attorney for Western District of Kentucky, 2001–2003; previously former Assistant U.S. Attorney for Western District of Kentucky, 1990–1995 Former running mate: G. Hunter Bates, former Chief of Staff to Mitch McConnell, 2000–2002, McConnell's campaign manager in 2002 Senate race; removed from ballot after primary due to not meeting constitutional residency requirements Rebecca Jackson - former Jefferson County Judge/Executive, 1998–2002 Running mate: Robbie Rudolph, Murray businessman; founder and owner of Rudolph Tire Inc. (later served on Fletcher's transition team, appointed Secretary of Finance, later State Secretary of Executive Cabinet in 2006, and eventually became Fletcher's running mate in 2007) Steve Nunn - son of former governor Louie B. Nunn; State Representative, 1990–2007 Running mate:Bob Heleringer, former State Representative, 1980–2002 Virgil Moore - State Senator, 1992–2005 Running mate: Don Bell, retired United States Secret Service agent Campaign Physician and former Air Force pilot Ernie Fletcher won the Republican primary easily. Earlier Fletcher had to replace his running mate for lieutenant governor, Hunter Bates, as he did not meet the residency requirements. Fletcher was backed by U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell and led in most polls before the primary. Results thumb|300px|Primary results by county: #d75d5d Fletcher #ffb2b2 Flethcer—40–50% #d75d5d Flethcer—60–70% #d72f30 Flethcer—70–80% #c21b18 Fletcher—80–90% #a80000 Fletcher—>90% #37c837 Jackson #aae5aa Jackson—30–40% #87de87 Jackson—40–50% #5fd35f Jackson—50–60% #37c837 Jackson—>60% #ee8e50 Nunn #ffb580 Nunn—40–50% #ff9a50 Nunn—50–60% #ee8e50 Nunn—>60% Republican primary results Ernie Fletcher Steve PenceFletcher's running mate printed on the ballot was Hunter Bates, but a notice to voters at the polls indicated that Bates had been replaced by Pence. Republican Party (United States) 90,912 57.31% Rebecca Jackson Robbie Rudolph Republican Party (United States) 44,084 27.79% Steve Nunn Bob Heleringer Republican Party (United States) 21,267 13.41% Virgil Moore Don Bell Republican Party (United States) 2,365 1.49% 158,628 100.00% General election Campaign Fletcher tried to link Chandler with the scandals that incumbent governor Patton's administration had been racked with. However Chandler attempted to distance himself from the governor, calling for him to resign and describing himself as a maverick. http://edition.cnn.com/2003/US/08/14/nyt.dao/ Kentucky Gubernatorial Race Is Test for Bush on Economy 2008-05-18 2003-08-14 CNN Chandler meanwhile attacked President George Bush for his handling of the economy and linked Fletcher with his policies. Nevertheless, Fletcher was assisted late in the campaign by President Bush, who made five visits to Kentucky to support him. Fletcher led in the polls throughout the campaign and towards the end pulled out a lead of 7 to 9 percent over Chandler. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/Congressional/Ky_Gov_03.html Kentucky Gubernatorial Election 2008-05-18 RealClearPolitics Just before the election the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed lawsuits for some residents of largely Democratic districts in West Louisville to try to get an injunction to stop Republicans from putting challengers in their precincts. Kentucky law allowed challengers to be stationed in precincts to question whether voters were eligible but the ACLU claimed they were targeting black voters and could intimidate people.http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/01/vote.challengers.ap/ Lawsuits filed ahead of Kentucky's gubernatorial election 2008-05-18 2003-11-05 CNN https://web.archive.org/web/20071210232938/http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/01/vote.challengers.ap/ 2007-12-10 dead However a judge refused to issue the injunction and allowed the challengers to go ahead. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=NewsLibrary&p_multi=APAB&d_place=APAB&p_theme=newslibrary2&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0FEEDC1BB7D40F2A&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM Judge refuses to ban Republicans' poll challengers from black neighborhoods 2008-05-18 2003-11-04 Associated Press Exit polls showed that Fletcher got a quarter of Democrats to support him as well as a majority of independents. Male voters backed Fletcher over Chandler by 59% to 41%, while women split almost equally. https://www.foxnews.com/story/kentucky-governor-fox-news-exit-poll Kentucky Governor: FOX News Exit Poll 2008-05-18 2003-11-10 Fox News Channel They also showed that 18% of voters used their votes to express opposition to the incumbent governor Paul Patton.http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/11/10/elec04.exit.polls.ap/ Survey data help explain GOP victories in Kentucky, Mississippi 2008-05-18 2003-11-10 CNN https://web.archive.org/web/20040103203209/http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/11/10/elec04.exit.polls.ap/ 2004-01-03 dead Polling Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesizekey Key:A – all adultsRV – registered votersLV – likely votersV – unclear Marginof error ErnieFletcher (R) BenChandler (D) Other /UndecidedSurveyUSASurveyUSA October 30 – November 1, 2003 755 (LV) ± 3.6% 52% 44% 4% Predictions Source Ranking As of SabatoLabor Day – One Year Out Sabato's Crystal Ball September 2, 2003 https://centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/articles/ljs2003090201/ Lean R flip September 2, 2003 Results 2003 Kentucky gubernatorial electionhttp://www.elect.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/8BEEB31D-5685-4BF3-A898-AAAFE37C86B3/0/state.txt Kentucky State Board of Elections Welcome to the State Board of Elections Elect.ky.gov 2012-08-18 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20110721043458/http://elect.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/8BEEB31D-5685-4BF3-A898-AAAFE37C86B3/0/state.txt July 21, 2011Voter Turnout Report for the 11/04/03 General Election https://elect.ky.gov/SiteCollectionDocuments/Election%20Statistics/turnout/2001-2005/03gen.pdf Kentucky State Board of Elections Republican Party (United States) Ernie Fletcher Stephen B. Pence 596,284 55.04 +32.83 Democratic Party (United States) A. B. "Ben" Chandler Charlie Owen 487,159 44.96 -15.74 1,083,443 100.0 N/A 1,088,192 40.22 +16.64 2,705,453 Republican Party (United States) Democratic Party (United States) Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican 25em Adair (Largest city: Columbia) Allen (Largest city: Scottsville) Anderson (Largest city: Lawrenceburg) Barren (Largest city: Glasgow) Bell (Largest city: Middlesboro) Boone (Largest city: Florence) Bourbon (Largest city: Paris) Boyle (Largest city: Danville) Bracken (Largest city: Augusta) Breckinridge (Largest city: Hardinsburg) Bullitt (Largest city: Mount Washington) Butler (Largest city: Morgantown) Caldwell (Largest city: Princeton) Calloway (Largest city: Murray) Campbell (Largest city: Fort Thomas) Carlisle (Largest city: Bardwell) Casey (Largest city: Liberty) Christian (Largest city: Hopkinsville) Clark (Largest city: Winchester) Clinton (Largest city: Albany) Crittenden (Largest city: Marion) Cumberland (Largest city: Burkesville) Daviess (Largest city: Owensboro) Edmonson (Largest city: Brownsville) Estill (Largest city: Irvine) Fayette (Largest city: Lexington) Fleming (Largest city: Flemingsburg) Gallatin (Largest city: Warsaw) Garrard (Largest city: Lancaster) Grant (Largest city: Williamstown) Graves (Largest city: Mayfield) Grayson (Largest city: Leitchfield) Green (Largest city: Greensburg) Hardin (Largest city: Elizabethtown) Harrison (Largest city: Cynthiana) Hart (Largest city: Horse Cave) Henry (Largest city: Eminence) Hickman (Largest city: Clinton) Hopkins (Largest city: Madisonville) Jessamine (Largest city: Nicholasville) Johnson (Largest city: Paintsville) Kenton (Largest city: Covington) Knox (Largest city: Barbourville) LaRue (Largest city: Hodgenville) Laurel (Largest city: London) Lee (Largest city: Beattyville) Lewis (Largest city: Vanceburg) Lincoln (Largest city: Stanford) Logan (Largest city: Russellville) Madison (Largest city: Richmond) Marshall (Largest city: Benton) Mason (Largest city: Maysville) McCracken (Largest city: Paducah) McCreary (Largest city: Pine Knot) Meade (Largest city: Brandenburg) Mercer (Largest city: Harrodsburg) Metcalfe (Largest city: Edmonton) Monroe (Largest city: Tompkinsville) Montgomery (Largest city: Mount Sterling) Nelson (Largest city: Bardstown) Nicholas (Largest city: Carlisle) Ohio (Largest city: Beaver Dam) Oldham (Largest city: La Grange) Owen (Largest city: Owenton) Owsley (Largest city: Booneville) Pendleton (Largest city: Falmouth) Powell (Largest city: Stanton) Pulaski (Largest city: Somerset) Robertson (Largest municipality: Mount Olivet) Rockcastle (Largest city: Mount Vernon) Russell (Largest city: Russell Springs) Scott (Largest city: Georgetown) Shelby (Largest city: Shelbyville) Simpson (Largest city: Franklin) Spencer (Largest city: Taylorsville) Taylor (Largest city: Campbellsville) Todd (Largest city: Elkton) Trigg (Largest city: Cadiz) Warren (Largest city: Bowling Green) Washington (Largest city: Springfield) Wayne (Largest city: Monticello) Whitley (Largest city: Corbin) Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic Harlan (Largest city: Cumberland) Letcher (Largest city: Jenkins) Perry (Largest city: Hazard) Notes References 30em Gubernatorial Kentucky 2003 Category:November 2003 in the United States