Andy Beshear appears headed to Governor’s desk after
narrow win over Matt Bevin

Just over one third of the registered voters in Clinton County found their way to the election polls to cast votes in a short but important general election ballot Tuesday.

Of the 7,582 Clinton County residents who are registered to vote, 2,792 cast ballots, either by going to the polls on Tuesday or by absentee balloting, either by paper ballot or via early voting on the voting machine that was set up in County Clerk Nathan Collins office.

That total represented about a 37 percent voter turnout in Tuesday’s election.

When the vote tallying was concluded Tuesday evening in Collins’ office, just under an hour after the polls closed at 6:00 p.m., Leslie Stockton had won the only one local race that had appeared contested on some Clinton County ballots.

Stockton won the race for the Clinton County School Board seat in District 3, defeating Bobby R. Reneau, who had run for the position as a write-in candidate.

In the three precincts involved in that race, Stockton won with a total of 483 votes to Reneau’s 89 votes.

Stockton, who had been appointed by the Kentucky Department of Education to serve on the Clinton County School Board after the resignation of board member Paula Key earlier this year.

The race between Stockton and Reneau was decided on by voters in the Highway, Illwill and Speck precincts.

Stockton carried all three of the precincts as well as the absentee voting in that race.

Another school board position that appeared on the ballot was for the seat in District 2, where Sue Irwin had been appointed by the State Board of Education following the resignation of Jeff Sams.

Irwin ran for the position unopposed on Tuesday’s ballot, still picking up 234 votes from voters in the Seventy Six and Neathery Cave Springs precincts.

The only other races that appeared on the ballot Tuesday were for state offices, including the nip and tuck race for the state’s highest office in Frankfort, that of the Kentucky Governor.

Republican incumbent Governor Matt Bevin was challenged by Democrat Andy Beshear, who is the son of former Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear.

Clinton County voters, which number heavily Republican over Democrat – 6,416 to 1,095, favored the Republican candidate Bevin in Tuesday’s voting.

Bevin received 73 percent of the vote totals Tuesday with 2,047 votes to Beshear’s 692 votes, or 25 percent. Libertarian candidate John Hicks received 45 votes in Clinton County, the most for any of the Libertarian candidates here.

Across Kentucky it was a different story, however, as late vote totals Tuesday night gave the indication that Bevin will be a one-term Kentucky Governor, and the state will see Andy Beshear being sworn in to office this coming January.

With 98 percent of Kentucky’s precincts reporting Tuesday night, Beshear was holding a narrow lead over Bevin.

Although the race had not been “called” for a winner at 8:00 p.m. central time, Beshear was holding a one percent lead over Bevin, 49.5 percent to 48.5 percent, 704,055 votes to 691,141.

In the race for Secretary of State, Clinton County voters even more heavily favored Republican candidate, Michael G. Adams, over Democrat Heather French-Henry, 2,189 to 528.

With just under 90 percent of Kentucky’s precincts reporting Tuesday night, Republican Adams held a narrow lead over Henry with 51 percent to 49 percent lead, 661,136 to 627,688.

In balloting for Attorney General, it was Republican Daniel Cameron with the nod from Clinton County voters with 2,292 over Democrat Gregory Stumbo who received 439 votes here.

Across Kentucky, with about 90 percent of the precincts reporting at 7:32 central time, Cameron appeared on his way to victory with 57 percent of the vote totals, 728,273 to Stumbo’s 551,176.

In the race for Auditor of Public Accounts, incumbent Republican candidates Mike Harmon easily bested Democrat challenger Sheri Donahue in Clinton County balloting, 2,254 votes to 380, while Libertarian candidate Kyle Hugenberg received 42 votes.

Across Kentucky, with 90 percent of the precincts reporting, Harmon was also holding a heavy lead over Donahue with 55 percent of the vote totals, to her 42 percent, 693,800 to 527,987.

In the race for State Treasurer, Republican incumbent Allison Ball bested Democrat challenger Michael Bowman, 2,338 votes to 369 votes.

Ball’s vote total in Clinton County was the largest number of votes for any of the candidates appearing on Tuesday’s ballot.

Kentucky voters also leaned toward Ball in statewide voting, with the incumbent holding a 60 percent to 40 percent lead with 90 percent of the precincts reporting, 760,302 to Bowman’s 509,169 votes.

Clinton County voters also gave a lop-sided nod to incumbent Commissioner of Agriculture Republican Ryan Quarles, who had been challenged by Democrat Robert Haley Conway.

Quarles received 2,316 votes to Conway’s 369 votes.

Quarles also appeared to be headed toward reelection late in the evening, with 90 percent of the precincts reporting he held a 58 percent lead over Conway’s 39 percent, 739,552 to 503,745 votes.

Clinton County voters also favored Jacqueline Caldwell in the race for Court of Appeals judge, over incumbent Michael Caperton, 932 to 852.

In district voting for that race it appeared the Caldwell was the favorite as well, defeating Caperton for the seat 54 percent to 46 percent, 60,276 votes to 52,256 votes.

Voters are reminded the vote totals noted in this article are to be considered unofficial until the election results are certified as official, a process that will be completed in the near future, barring any calls for re-canvass or recounts in any of the races.

Clinton County Election Official Cindy Choate, right, watches as voters in the Snow voting house, stand in line before signing in to cast their ballots. Despite what was expected to be a light turnout for an election with only a handful of state races, there was a line of voters waiting to cast ballots early Tuesday morning.

Election tabulators Gina Poore and Amanda Messer wrote down the first of 13 precincts to arrive at the courthouse Tuesday night. County Clerk Nathan Collins read each precinct as they came in.

Leslie Stockton