Who is Morgan McGarvey? What to know about John Yarmuth's would-be successor

Democratic state Sen. Morgan McGarvey is running for Kentucky's 3rd Congressional District, which covers most of Jefferson County and has been represented by retiring U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth since 2007.

Here's what to know about McGarvey, a lifelong Jefferson County resident who defeated state Rep. Attica Scott in the May 17 Democratic primary election for Congress and now hopes to go on to win November's general election:

He's progressive

The 42-year-old is campaigning as a "progressive champion" for Kentucky.

He supports decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana, Medicare for All, the pro-union Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and a $15-per-hour federal minimum wage paired with further adjustments for inflation, among other policies.

On his campaign website, McGarvey stresses that he has "stood firm on our progressive values to protect health care and teachers’ pensions, promote clean energy and defend choice so that Kentucky doesn’t look like Texas."

"For the past eight years, I’ve represented (Senate Minority Leader) Mitch McConnell’s state senate district in the KY legislature. And I’ve done it as an unapologetic, won’t-back-down progressive Democrat," he says online. "Now I want to go push back against McConnell’s dangerous agenda in Washington because Kentucky deserves much, much better."

He's the Kentucky Senate's top Democrat

McGarvey became a state senator in 2012 and quickly built respect and rapport within his party's caucus, eventually rising to the position of Senate minority leader.

As such, he is the highest-ranking Democrat in that chamber of the legislature.

Over time, he has developed working relationships with leading conservative lawmakers, and he's campaigning on his success in getting legislation approved by the Republican-controlled legislature.

However, he's also emphasizing that he hasn't shied away from difficult fights, as a party leader, over abortion rights and other battleground issues.

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He's running as a consensus-builder

In his first television ad and throughout his campaign, McGarvey has talked about how he has been able to get laws passed even though the GOP has supermajority control of the state Senate and House of Representatives.

At its core, his pitch to voters centers on his ability "to get things done while not compromising at all on my values."

"Frankfort's not a picnic," he told The Courier Journal. "It's hardball politics...

"I think it's important to talk about the fact I've been in a super-minority and a highly partisan atmosphere, where for four years of it (Republican) Matt Bevin was governor, still being able to pass legislation through the legislative and executive branches that make a big difference in our community."

He's a dad to prematurely born twins

A decade ago, McGarvey and his wife, Chris, became the parents of twins who were born 14 weeks early and spent months in the hospital before they finally could come home.

During his political career and in this recent campaign ad, McGarvey has talked about how that experience, and the trouble he and his wife had getting insurance coverage for their babies' care, impacted his work and priorities as a legislator.

Now a father of three children, he cites the importance of improving access to affordable child care and providing universal pre-kindergarten among his policy priorities as a congressional candidate.

"It’s a privilege that Chris is the breadwinner of our household while I’ve been in the state senate," he says on his website. "But we need more Members of Congress who live in the day-to-day reality of being working parents."

He got a lot of early support

When he first ran for office, McGarvey told The Courier Journal it was a "mad scramble in a multi-candidate primary."

"I learned firsthand the importance of getting in and working hard for early support," he said.

He put that lesson to work again this time around.

Yarmuth gave him a heads-up the day before he announced his retirement in October, and McGarvey sketched out a campaign launch in time to kick off his bid for the longtime congressman's now-open seat less than 10 minutes after Yarmuth revealed he's stepping down.

A day later, he said he'd raised over $160,000 and scored endorsements from 18 current and former public officials.

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Democratic state Sen. Gerald Neal, one of McGarvey's earliest endorsers, has worked with him for years.

"He looks for solutions and avenues ... and that's exactly what is needed," Neal said of McGarvey. "He's not a name-caller or flame-thrower. He's a doer, and he's quite impressive."

He isn't assuming victory in November

Looking ahead to this fall, McGarvey has an undeniable edge since the 3rd Congressional District is solidly Democratic. Immediately after his primary win, though, McGarvey signaled he isn't assuming another victory is assured in the upcoming general election.

"You know there's only two ways to run: unopposed and scared," he said. "We're going to run, we're going to run hard and we're going to try and keep this seat Democratic."

His opponent is local businessman Stuart Ray, who scored a razor-thin victory in a crowded Republican primary this spring and became the GOP's nominee for the seat Yarmuth has held onto for 15 years.

On Election Night in May, McGarvey said he felt a mix of emotions after winning the Democratic nomination for Yarmuth's seat and was prepared for the work ahead.

"It's excitement. It's relief. It's also knowing that tomorrow we're going right back to work, because we do have to continue building those coalitions, bringing people together, so that we can win again in the fall," he told The Courier Journal.

Morgan Watkins is The Courier Journal's chief political reporter. Contact her at mwatkins@courierjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter: @morganwatkins26.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Morgan McGarvey: What to know about potential Yarmuth successor