The 2003 Kentucky gubernatorial election was held to elect the

Governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; sinc ...

on November 4, 2003. Republican candidate

Ernie Fletcher Ernest Lee Fletcher (born November 12, 1952) is an American physician and politician who was the List of governors of Kentucky, 60th governor of Kentucky from 2003 to 2007. He previously served three consecutive terms in the United States House ...

defeated

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Ben Chandler Albert Benjamin Chandler III (born September 12, 1959) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, United States representative for from 2004 to 2013. A United States Democratic Party, Democrat, ...

and became the first Republican governor of

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

in 36 years.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

Kentucky Attorney General The attorney general of Kentucky is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of Kentucky, created by the Kentucky Constitution (Ky.Const. § 91). Under Kentucky law, they serve several roles, including the state's chief prosecutor (KRS 15.700), ...

, 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 Walter Demaree "Jody" Richards Jr. (born February 20, 1938) is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1976 until 2019. He is the longest serving Speaker of the House in the history ...

–

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...

, 1975–present (Speaker of the House, 1996–present). :*Running mate: Tony Miller, Jefferson County Circuit Court Clerk, 1988-present. *Otis Hensley – Private contractor from Wallins Creek, Kentucky. :*Running mate: Richard Robbins

Withdrawn

Bruce Lunsford William Bruce Lunsford (born November 11, 1947) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician from Kentucky. He has served various roles in the Kentucky Democratic Party, including party treasurer, Deputy Development Secretary, and Head ...

– prominent 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 The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election. There may or may not be ...

Democratic Governor

Paul E. Patton Paul Edward Patton (born May 26, 1937) is an American politician who served as the 59th governor of Kentucky from 1995 to 2003. Because of a 1992 amendment to the Kentucky Constitution, he was the first governor eligible to run for a second te ...

was

term limited A term limit is a legal restriction on the number of terms a person may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potential for monopoly, wher ...

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.

State Attorney General The state attorney general in each of the 50 U.S. states, of the District of Columbia, federal district, or of any of the Territories of the United States, territories is the chief legal advisor to the State governments of the United States, sta ...

Ben Chandler won the primary narrowly defeating the

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

of the

Kentucky House of Representatives The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a ...

, whose running mate was Tony Miller. He had led in the polls for several months before the primary. Earlier businessman

had dropped out of the primary after Chandler launched

adverts Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of interest to consumers. It is typically used ...

talking of abuse at

nursing homes A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of older people, senior citizens, or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as care homes, skilled nursing facilities (SNF), or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms ...

run by Lunsford's company. Lunsford had spent 8 million

dollars Dollar is the name of more than 25 currencies. The United States dollar, named after the international currency known as the Spanish dollar, was established in 1792 and is the first so named that still survives. Others include the Australian d ...

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

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for Kentucky's 6th congressional district, 1999–present; former

, 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 The United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky (in case citations, W.D. Ky.) is the federal district court for the western part of the state of Kentucky. Appeals from the Western District of Kentucky are taken to the Unite ...

, 1990–1995 :**Former running mate: G. Hunter Bates, former Chief of Staff to

Mitch McConnell Addison Mitchell McConnell III (; born February 20, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the senior United States senator from Kentucky, a seat he has held since 1985. McConnell is in his seventh Senate term and is the long ...

, 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 The Jefferson County Judge/Executive is the nominal chief executive of Jefferson County, Kentucky. On January 3, 2003, the county government merged with that of its largest city, Louisville, to create the Louisville Metro Government. The former po ...

, 1998–2002 :*Running mate: Robbie Rudolph,

Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American bicycle manufacturer * Murray Motor Car Company, an American car manufacturer * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trus ...

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 Louie Broady Nunn (March 8, 1924 – January 29, 2004) was an American politician who served as the 52nd governor of Kentucky. Elected in 1967, he was the only Republican to hold the office between the end of Simeon Willis's term in 1947 and ...

;

, 1990–present :*Running mate: Bob Heleringer, former

, 1980–2002 * Virgil Moore -

State Senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

, 1992–present :*Running mate: Don Bell, retired

United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to American political leaders, thei ...

agent

Campaign

Physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

and former

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

pilot Ernie Fletcher won the Republican primary easily. Earlier Fletcher had to replace his

running mate A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate running with a pre ...

for

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

, Hunter Bates, as he did not meet the residency requirements. Fletcher was backed by

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

and led in most polls before the primary.

Results

General election

Campaign

Fletcher tried to link Chandler with the scandals that incumbent governor Patton's

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...

had been racked with. However Chandler attempted to distance himself from the governor, calling for him to resign and describing himself as a maverick. 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. Just before the election the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...

(ACLU) filed lawsuits for some residents of largely Democratic districts in West

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

to try to get an

injunction An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a special court order compelling a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. It was developed by the English courts of equity but its origins go back to Roman law and the equitable rem ...

to stop Republicans from putting challengers in their

precincts Precinct may refer to: * An electoral precinct * A police precinct * A religious precinct * A arcade (architecture)#shopping arcades, shopping arcade or shopping mall ** A Pedestrian zone Places * A neighborhood, in Australia * A unit of public ...

. 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. However a judge refused to issue the injunction and allowed the challengers to go ahead.

Exit poll An election exit poll is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have exited the polling stations. A similar poll conducted before actual voters have voted is called an entrance poll. Pollsters – usually private companies working fo ...

s 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. They also showed that 18% of voters used their votes to express opposition to the incumbent governor Paul Patton.

Polling

Predictions

Results

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

Harlan Harlan is a given name and a surname which may refer to: Surname * Abram D. Harlan (1833–1908), American politician from Pennsylvania * Bob Harlan (born 1936 Robert E. Harlan), American football executive * Bruce Harlan (1926–1959), America ...

(Largest city:

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...

) * Letcher (Largest city:

Jenkins Jenkins may refer to: People * Jenkins (name), history of the surname * List of people with surname Jenkins * The Jenkins, country music group Places United States * Jenkins, Illinois *Jenkins, Kentucky * Jenkins, Minnesota * Jenkins, Missour ...

) *

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

(Largest city:

Hazard A hazard is a potential source of harm. Substances, events, or circumstances can constitute hazards when their nature would potentially allow them to cause damage to health, life, property, or any other interest of value. The probability of that ...

)

Notes

References

{{Elections in Kentucky footer

Gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

November 2003 in the United States 2003 in Kentucky