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Kentucky Democrats Staying Away From Obama's Visit

White House

Kentucky Attorney General and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jack Conway says he won’t be in Louisville Thursday when President Barack Obama visits the city.  Conway is only the latest Democratic candidate to attempt to avoid being tied to Obama.

Obama is unpopular in Kentucky, and has lost to his rivals here during the last two presidential races. Tying Democrats to the president and his policies has been part of the GOP strategy for the past few years, most recently in last year’s U.S. Senate race. During that campaign, Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes famously refused to say whether she voted for Obama and ended up losing to incumbent Republican Mitch McConnell by a wide margin.

State Democrats like Grimes and Conway have found themselves in the awkward position of opposing the national Democratic platform and courting those who worry that the president’s environmental policies amount to a fatal blow to the already crippled coal industry. Conway has been working on that; in his capacity as Attorney General, he joined a multi-state lawsuit against the EPA’s proposed carbon regulations. Last week, Conway also received an endorsement from the United Mine Workers Association.

Conway will be in eastern Kentucky to discuss anti-drug efforts when Obama talks about the economy on Thursday in Louisville.

Other prominent Democratic candidates will miss Obama's visit this time.

State Auditor Adam Edelen says he will attend a fundraiser in eastern Kentucky. Attorney general candidate Andy Beshear will be meeting with law enforcement to talk about heroin abuse.

Ryland Barton is the Managing Editor for Collaboratives. He's covered politics and state government for NPR member stations KWBU in Waco and KUT in Austin. He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago and a master's degree in journalism from the University of Texas. He grew up in Lexington.

Email Ryland at rbarton@lpm.org.