Kentucky Democrats rally behind Booker in final push for red Senate seat

The campaign for a solidly red Kentucky Senate seat entered its final days with a surge of Democratic support.

Former state Rep. Charles Booker addressed a packed audience at the Canary Club in Louisville’s Shelby Park neighborhood on Thursday evening. He told supporters his bid to unseat GOP Congressman Andy Barr remains viable despite the state voting for Donald Trump by 30 percentage points in 2024. Booker, a Black progressive who previously lost in the 2020 primary and the 2022 general election to Sen. Rand Paul, framed the race as a test of Kentucky’s political identity.

“I learned through faith that mountains still move, and I was taught that we are the head and not the tail,” Booker said. “So I decided to step out on faith to say that since we are more than Congress, and Kentucky deserves better than what we've been getting, how about we lead for the change we want to see?”

A procession of party leaders joined Booker on stage to encourage the crowd. Gov. Andy Beshear, Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, Rep. Morgan McGarvey, and state Rep. Rocky Adkins all urged the audience to maintain momentum. Beshear argued that a strong showing in Louisville would signal the size of the Democratic wave to the rest of the country. “We can send a heck of a message right here in Louisville and right here in the commonwealth of Kentucky,” Beshear said.

The show of support continued into Friday with appearances by DNC Chair Ken Martin, the state AFL-CIO, and host Joy Reid. These events marked a late-stage effort to energize the base in a district where Democrats have historically struggled to win statewide offices.

Booker faces a steep financial hurdle. His opponent, Andy Barr, has raised millions more in campaign funds and benefits from outside spending that overwhelmingly favors his re-election. A single local PAC, funded by Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, has contributed roughly $3,000 to Booker’s general election effort. In contrast, nearly $2 million has been spent to support Barr and attack Booker.

Barr has campaigned across the state, focusing recently on his Lexington-area district where he is also campaigning for local Republican Ralph Alvarado. Barr frequently labels Booker a socialist, citing his support for the Green New Deal, universal Medicare, and the abolition of ICE. “If he wants to tax and spend like a socialist.. Guess what?” Barr said at a recent rally. “That's a socialist.”

Booker called the label a “fear tactic” designed to distract from high costs of living. “Having high-quality healthcare is not radical to the people of Kentucky,” Booker said. “It's the right thing to do. Being able to forge your gas and groceries is not radical to the people of Kentucky. It's the right thing to do.”

Unofficial tallies show nearly 136,000 Kentuckians voted on the first day of early voting, a higher percentage than the 82,000 who voted on the first day in 2022. Democrats make up a larger share of these early voters, even though Republicans hold a majority of total registrations.

Booker acknowledged the late start of national backing but expressed pride in the grassroots movement he built. “I definitely would have loved to have seen more support early on, but this is Kentucky's story,” Booker said. “You know, we're often counted out.”