Polls close in Kentucky as Beshear hopes abortion debate hands him another term as governor

By BRUCE SCHREINER
Associated Press

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Polls in Kentucky have closed as voters there decide whether to give Democratic incumbent Gov. Andy Beshear a second term in the Republican-leaning state. Beshear is up against Republican challenger Daniel Cameron. After months of sparring over abortion and the economy, they’ll await the verdict from voters Tuesday. Their showdown offers an off-year test for competing messages that could foreshadow strategies in next year’s national contests. Beshear slammed Cameron for supporting the state’s abortion ban, which lacks exceptions for rape or incest. Cameron scrambled to find his footing in the new era of abortion politics since Roe v. Wade was overturned. Cameron tried tapping into discontent with the post-pandemic inflationary surge.