Beshear's margin of victory and the Biden effect: 5 takeaways from Kentucky's election

In the end, Kentuckians liked Andy Beshear more.

The Bluegrass State's governor, who carried his state through a pandemic and natural disasters, faced an onslaught of spending from state and national Republicans. They were betting on President Joe Biden's unpopularity and culture war issues that have hurt the Democratic brand with conservatives in Tuesday's race for governor.

Ultimately, however, Republican challenger Daniel Cameron's bet failed to produce gains in rural counties. The results also showed the GOP nominee's own political baggage — whether his strict anti-abortion views or his role in the Breonna Taylor case — sunk him in urban centers and suburban areas.

"How did the Biden bashing work for you?" Ron Klain, former White House chief of staff, asked Cameron, the state's attorney general, in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Here are five key takeaways from Tuesday's Kentucky results:

Beshear extended margins in Democratic stronghold

Four years ago, Beshear won by a razor-thin margin of just over 5,000 votes. He needed all the help he could get from cities such as Louisville and Lexington.

Those metro areas showed up again Tuesday, and in greater numbers.

Beshear took 72% of the vote in Jefferson County (Louisville, where the Taylor case unfolded) after winning 67% of the vote in 2019. He won 72% of the vote in Fayette County (Lexington) after winning 65% of the vote four years ago. Nearby Franklin County delivered 69% of its vote to Beshear after he landed 61% in 2019.

Those margins were critical as he pulled away from Cameron and showed how much the governor had consolidated progressives who were galvanized by his campaign leaning into abortion access, job creation and health care.

Other areas helped Beshear as well.

In multiple counties where he eeked out a win against former Gov. Matt Bevin, he extended those margins, including areas such as Scott, Kenton and Breathitt counties.

Biden doesn't bury Beshear

Throughout the campaign, Cameron did everything he could to tie Beshear to Biden, who lost Kentucky by about 26 points in the 2020 election.

Biden's approval numbers have plummeted nationally and are especially abysmal in Kentucky.

But in the end, it wasn’t enough.

In his victory speech, Beshear took note of how his opponent and GOP allies tried to nationalize the race, and that his win is a rebuke of "anger politics."

"Tonight, Kentucky made a choice ... a choice of Jack Harlow over (Arkansas Gov.) Sarah Huckabee Sanders," he said, a reference to notable figures who had campaigned with the two candidates in the last week before the election.

The governor was able to win another term Tuesday without support from former President Donald Trump, who called Beshear “an absolute disaster” during a tele-rally for Cameron on Monday and put out a two-minute video last week reaffirming his endorsement of Cameron.

Beshear had branded himself in ads and debates as a moderate whose appeal could cross over to Trump voters, and as someone who had at times opposed both presidents during his years on office, which spanned both presidential administrations.

"My job as governor is to stand up for Kentuckians, whether that is for or against any president," he said during an October debate. "There were times I agreed and disagreed with President Trump. There are times I agree and disagree with President Biden."

While Beshear worked to avoid mentioning Biden leading up to Election Day, Cameron had hammered him for saying he supports the president’s reelection during an interview with the Lexington Herald-Leader.

But Beshear bump doesn't help other Democrats

Beshear is popular and he won more decisively than he did four years ago. But it didn't help the rest of his party one bit.

In every other statewide election, Republicans prevailed, from attorney general to agriculture commissioner. Each GOP candidate won by double-digit margins.

This doesn't bode well for Democrats who have not had much to celebrate outside of their governor, who built popularity while in office in part through his 'aw, shucks' persona and family name (his father Steve Beshear also spent eight years as governor).

Out of 16 elections for statewide office in the past 10 years, including the U.S. Senate races, Democrats have won a grand total of three before Tuesday's contests.

Former GOP House leader scores win, comeback

Republican Jonathan Shell was once considered a rising star in the Kentucky politics after being the youngest state House legislator elected in 2012.

A pupil of U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Lancaster native was the state GOP's first majority leader after it reclaimed the lower chamber as part of the national Trump wave in 2016.

But Shell was defeated in a 2018 upset in the GOP primary by a math teacher, which was part of another political wave of educators.

Five years later, Shell made a triumphant return to politics, defeating Democrat Sierra Enlow by taking 59% of the vote Tuesday in the agriculture commissioner race. During the campaign, he said in the role, he would be a "defender of our farmers and rural communities."

An interesting victory speech from Michael Adams

Secretary of State Michael Adams was arguably one of the more bipartisan candidates on the 2023 ballot outside of Beshear himself.

The 47-year-old Republican stood up against far-right wing forces that denied the 2020 presidential election outcome and helped usher in Kentucky's early voting process, which won bipartisan praise amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Adams raised some eyebrows Tuesday during his speech declaring victory at the Republicans' election night gathering in Louisville, telling supporters Kentucky had rejected a "negative campaign" and put politics aside by awarding him a second term.

“If we can boldly take Kentucky from the bottom to the top in election reform, why can’t we do the same with education, with public safety, with quality of life, with social mobility?" Adams asked. "The answer is: We absolutely can. And I’m optimistic for our long-term future in the commonwealth.”

Education and public safety have little to do with a secretary of state's responsibilities. However, Beshear will be out of office and ineligible to run for governor again in 2027, and the Democratic party lost every down-ballot race in Tuesday's election. Adams, meanwhile, racked up more than 775,000 total votes, the best of any candidate statewide. His next moves will be worth watching.

Reach Phillip M. Bailey at pbailey@usatoday.com. Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Beshear, Biden, Michael Adams: 5 takeaways from the Kentucky election