Voters head to the polls across Kentucky

Polls at 6 a.m. opened to a beautiful fall day in Kentucky, as voters made their way to precincts around the state.

Voters will decide who is going to replace U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, as well as all six Congressional districts. One of those, the heavily contested 6th District will be heavily watched by politicos because Kentucky’s polls close at 6 p.m., which make it, along with Indiana, the earliest in the nation.

Voters will also be deciding on a constitutional amendment that would curb the governor’s pardon power before and after elections, an answer to the hugely controversial pardons made by former Gov. Matt Bevin shortly before he left office.

Also, every seat in the state House of Representatives is up, as well as several state Senate seats here.

Early voting was up about 30% from the last midterm election in 2022.

Political experts will also be watching to see what kind of night it will be for Gov. Andy Beshear, who is also head of the Democratic Governors Association. He put financial and personal campaign support behind Zach Dembo, the Democratic candidate in the 6th District, and a host of Democratic gubernatorial candidates. All those results will be parsed in light of Beshear’s gubernatorial ambitions.

Attorney General Russell Coleman is monitoring the election from his Election Integrity Command Center; federal election monitors are also expected to be on hand in Lexington and Louisville.

Coleman said that just before 11 a.m. there had been 82 complaints to the election fraud hotline, ranging from legal questions to electioneering. Voters who suspect election law violations can call the Election Fraud Hotline at (800) 328-VOTE or make a report online.

Stay tuned at www.kentuckylantern.com for all the latest news and results.