1996 Kentucky Senate election

Not to be confused with 1996 United States Senate election in Kentucky.

1996 Kentucky Senate election

November 5, 1996
19 out of 38 seats in the Kentucky Senate 20 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party Third party   Leader Larry Saunders Dan Kelly John A. Rose Party Coalition Republican Democratic Leader since January 7, 1997 November 12, 1994 January 5, 1993 Leader's seat 37th – Louisville 14th – Springfield 28th – Winchester Last election – 17 21 Seats won 5 18 15 Seat change 5 1 6 Seats up – 7 12 Races won – 8 11
Results:      Democratic hold      Coalition gain      Republican hold      Republican gain      No election Popular vote:      50–60%      60–70%      >90%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      >90%
Senate President before election John A. Rose Democratic Elected Senate President Larry Saunders Coalition government

The 1996 Kentucky Senate election was held on November 5, 1996. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were held on May 28. Half of the senate (all odd-numbered seats) were up for election. Despite the Democratic Party maintaining a majority of 20 seats, five members joined all 18 Republicans to elect Larry Saunders the President of the Senate. This gave Republicans effective control of the Senate for the first time since 1920.

A numbered map of the senate districts at the time can be viewed here.

Overview

Party		Candidates		Votes	%	Seats
		Opposed	Unopposed			Before	Won	After	+/−
	Democratic	16	2	322,901	54.23	21	11	20	-1
	Republican	16	1	272,485	45.77	17	8	18	+1
Total		32	3	595,386	100.00	38	19	38	±0
Source: Kentucky Secretary of State

Retiring incumbents

One senator retired, who did not run for another office. Additionally, Mike Moloney resigned from the senate on July 31, 1996.

1. 15th: James D. Crase (Somerset): Retired.

Incumbents defeated

Two incumbents lost renomination in the primary election, and two incumbents lost reelection in the general election.

In the primary election

Democrats

Two Democrats lost renomination.

1. 17th: Charlie Berger (first elected in 1979) lost renomination to Glenn Freeman, who won the general election.
2. 31st: Kelsey E. Friend Sr. (first elected in 1971) lost renomination to Gary C. Johnson, who won the general election.

Republicans

No Republicans lost renomination.

In the general election

Democrats

One Democrat lost reelection to a Republican.

1. 23rd: Joseph U. Meyer (first elected in 1988) lost to Jack Westwood.

Republicans

One Republican lost reelection to a Democrat.

1. 29th: John David Preston (elected in 1994) lost a redistricting race to fellow incumbent Benny Ray Bailey.

Summary by district

Certified results by the Kentucky Secretary of State are available online for the primary election and general election.

† – Incumbent not seeking re-election

District	Incumbent	Party		Elected	Party
1	Jeff Green		Dem	Jeff Green		Dem
3	Joey Pendleton		Dem	Joey Pendleton		Dem
5	Virgil Moore		Rep	Virgil Moore		Rep
7	Lindy Casebier		Rep	Lindy Casebier		Rep
9	Richard "Richie" Sanders		Rep	Richard "Richie" Sanders		Rep
11	Richard L. "Dick" Roeding		Rep	Richard L. "Dick" Roeding		Rep
13	Vacant			Ernesto Scorsone		Dem
15	James D. Crase†		Rep	Vernie McGaha		Rep
17	Charlie Berger		Dem	Glenn Freeman		Dem
19	Tim Shaughnessy		Dem	Tim Shaughnessy		Dem
21	Albert L. Robinson		Rep	Albert L. Robinson		Rep
23	Joseph U. Meyer		Dem	Jack Westwood		Rep
25	John David Preston		Rep	Robert Stivers		Rep
27	Walter "Doc" Blevins		Dem	Walter "Doc" Blevins		Dem
29	Benny Ray Bailey		Dem	Benny Ray Bailey		Dem
31	Kelsey E. Friend Sr.		Dem	Gary C. Johnson		Dem
33	Gerald A. Neal		Dem	Gerald A. Neal		Dem
35	David K. Karem		Dem	David K. Karem		Dem
37	Larry Saunders		Dem	Larry Saunders		Dem

Closest races

Seats where the margin of victory was under 10%:

1. District 5, 2.48%
2. District 7, 4.36%
3. District 25, 5.44%
4. District 17, 5.87%
5. District 23, 8.50% (gain)

Special elections

District 9 special

Richard "Richie" Sanders was elected in June 1996 following the resignation of Walter Arnold Baker.

1996 Kentucky Senate 9th district special election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Richard "Richie" Sanders	6,908	58.6
	Democratic	John "Jake" D. Dickinson	4,889	41.4
Total votes			11,797	100.0
	Republican hold

District 13 special

§ Special election

District 1

Incumbent senator Jeff Green won reelection unopposed.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Jeff Green, incumbent senator

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 1st district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Jeff Green (incumbent)	Unopposed
Total votes			23,679	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 3

Incumbent senator Joey Pendleton won reelection, defeating Republican John Young.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Joey Pendleton, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• John Young

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 3rd district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Joey Pendleton (incumbent)	13,043	55.6
	Republican	John Young	10,416	44.4
Total votes			23,459	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 5

Incumbent senator Virgil Moore won reelection, defeating Democrat Joe M. Hager.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Joe M. Hager

Eliminated in primary

• Harold E. Davidson

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Joe M. Hager	3,455	66.9
	Democratic	Harold E. Davidson	1,706	33.1
Total votes			5,161	100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Virgil Moore, incumbent senator

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 5th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Virgil Moore (incumbent)	16,738	51.2
	Democratic	Joe M. Hager	15,928	48.8
Total votes			32,666	100.0
	Republican hold

District 7

Incumbent senator Lindy Casebier won reelection, defeating Democrat Charles W. Miller.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Charles W. Miller

Eliminated in primary

• Dennis Mitchell

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Charles W. Miller	4,068	51.4
	Democratic	Dennis Mitchell	3,848	48.6
Total votes			7,916	100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Lindy Casebier, incumbent senator

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 7th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Lindy Casebier (incumbent)	19,929	52.2
	Democratic	Charles W. Miller	18,263	47.8
Total votes			38,192	100.0
	Republican hold

District 9

Incumbent senator Richard "Richie" Sanders won reelection, defeating Democrat John "Jake" D. Dickinson.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• John "Jake" D. Dickinson

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Richard "Richie" Sanders, incumbent senator

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 9th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Richard "Richie" Sanders (incumbent)	19,632	60.6
	Democratic	John "Jake" D. Dickinson	12,777	39.4
Total votes			32,409	100.0
	Republican hold

District 11

Incumbent senator Richard L. "Dick" Roeding won reelection, defeating Democrat Sandra Easton.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Sandra Easton

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Richard L. "Dick" Roeding, incumbent senator

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 11th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Richard L. "Dick" Roeding (incumbent)	28,604	66.2
	Democratic	Sandra Easton	14,595	33.8
Total votes			43,199	100.0
	Republican hold

District 13

Incumbent senator Mike Moloney resigned from the senate in July 1996. He was succeeded by Democrat Ernesto Scorsone, who was elected in both the regular election and a special election for the remainder of Moloney's term.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Ernesto Scorsone, representative from the 75th district (1985–1996)

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• N. Mitchell Meade

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 13th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ernesto Scorsone	18,262	61.1
	Republican	N. Mitchell Meade	11,639	38.9
Total votes			29,901	100.0
	Democratic hold

Special election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 13th district special election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Ernesto Scorsone	14,533	60.0
	Republican	N. Mitchell Meade	9,686	40.0
Total votes			24,219	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 15

Incumbent senator James D. Crase did not seek reelection. He was succeeded by Republican Vernie McGaha.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Gene Daniels

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Vernie McGaha

Eliminated in primary

• S. David Carr
• Larry Sears Nichols
• William J. Wilson Jr.

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Vernie McGaha	4,836	51.5
	Republican	William J. Wilson, Jr.	1,665	17.7
	Republican	S. David Carr	1,531	16.3
	Republican	Larry Sears Nichols	1,355	14.4
Total votes			9,387	100.0

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 15th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Vernie McGaha	23,733	72.8
	Democratic	Gene Daniels	8,845	27.2
Total votes			32,578	100.0
	Republican hold

District 17

Incumbent Democratic senator Charlie Berger was defeated for renomination by Glenn Freeman.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Glenn Freeman

Eliminated in primary

• Bill Blair Baird
• Charlie Berger, incumbent senator

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Glenn Freeman	6,011	51.8
	Democratic	Charlie Berger (incumbent)	4,162	35.9
	Democratic	Bill Blair Baird	1,421	12.3
Total votes			11,594	100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• J. C. Ausmus III

Eliminated in primary

• Johnnie Lloyd Turner

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	J. C. Ausmus III	2,286	59.6
	Republican	Johnnie Lloyd Turner	1,548	40.4
Total votes			3,834	100.0

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 17th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Glenn Freeman	14,520	52.9
	Republican	J. C. Ausmus III	12,909	47.1
Total votes			27,429	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 19

Incumbent senator Tim Shaughnessy won reelection, defeating Republican Barbara "Bobbie" Holsclaw.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Tim Shaughnessy, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Barbara "Bobbie" Holsclaw

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 19th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tim Shaughnessy (incumbent)	24,198	59.3
	Republican	Barbara "Bobbie" Holsclaw	16,632	40.7
Total votes			40,830	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 21

Incumbent senator Albert L. Robinson won reelection, defeating primary election challengers.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Albert L. Robinson, incumbent senator

Eliminated in primary

• Michael Dean
• Helen Jackson

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Albert L. Robinson (incumbent)	3,694	62.0
	Republican	Michael Dean	1,578	26.5
	Republican	Helen Jackson	688	11.5
Total votes			5,960	100.0

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 21st district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Albert L. Robinson (incumbent)	Unopposed
Total votes			20,450	100.0
	Republican hold

District 23

Incumbent senator Joseph U. Meyer was defeated for reelection by Republican Jack Westwood.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Joseph U. Meyer, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Jack Westwood

Eliminated in primary

• Joyce M. Macke
• Joe Mattioli

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jack Westwood	1,172	50.1
	Republican	Joe Mattioli	706	30.2
	Republican	Joyce M. Macke	460	19.7
Total votes			2,338	100.0

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 23rd district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jack Westwood	16,429	54.3
	Democratic	Joseph U. Meyer (incumbent)	13,854	45.7
Total votes			30,283	100.0
	Republican gain from Democratic

District 25

Incumbent senator John David Preston was redistricted to the 29th district and was succeeded by Robert Stivers.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Charles M. Derrickson

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Robert Stivers

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 25th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Robert Stivers	14,027	52.7
	Democratic	Charles M. Derrickson	12,579	47.3
Total votes			26,606	100.0
	Republican hold

District 27

Incumbent senator Walter "Doc" Blevins won reelection, defeating Republican Randy Memmer.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Walter "Doc" Blevins, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Randy Memmer

Eliminated in primary

• Mary "Candy" Parker
• Duane Porter

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Randy Memmer	1,118	43.0
	Republican	Duane Porter	1,038	40.0
	Republican	Mary "Candy" Parker	441	17.0
Total votes			2,597	100.0

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 27th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Walter "Doc" Blevins (incumbent)	18,211	60.1
	Republican	Randy Memmer	12,113	39.9
Total votes			30,324	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 29

Incumbent senator Benny Ray Bailey won reelection, defeating Republican senator John David Preston, who had been redistricted from the 25th district.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Benny Ray Bailey, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• John David Preston, senator from the 25th district (1994–1997)

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 29th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Benny Ray Bailey (incumbent)	18,878	61.2
	Republican	John David Preston	11,978	38.8
Total votes			30,856	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 31

Incumbent Democratic senator Kelsey E. Friend Sr. was defeated for renomination by Gary C. Johnson.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Gary C. Johnson

Eliminated in primary

• Kelsey E. Friend Sr., incumbent senator

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Gary C. Johnson	8,322	54.6
	Democratic	Kelsey E. Friend, Sr. (incumbent)	6,923	45.4
Total votes			15,245	100.0

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Kevin Hall

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 31st district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Gary C. Johnson	18,167	64.1
	Republican	Kevin Hall	10,154	35.9
Total votes			28,321	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 33

Incumbent senator Gerald A. Neal won reelection unopposed.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Gerald A. Neal, incumbent senator

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 33rd district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Gerald A. Neal (incumbent)	Unopposed
Total votes			24,373	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 35

Incumbent senator David K. Karem won reelection, defeating Republican Bruce McCrea.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• David K. Karem, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Bruce McCrea

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 35th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	David K. Karem (incumbent)	30,381	65.4
	Republican	Bruce McCrea	16,096	34.6
Total votes			46,477	100.0
	Democratic hold

District 37

Incumbent senator Larry Saunders won reelection, defeating Republican William C. Cothron.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Larry Saunders, incumbent senator

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• William C. Cothron

General election

Results

1996 Kentucky Senate 37th district election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Larry Saunders (incumbent)	22,348	67.0
	Republican	William C. Cothron	11,006	33.0
Total votes			33,354	100.0
	Democratic hold

See also

• 1996 Kentucky elections
  • 1996 Kentucky House of Representatives election
  • 1996 United States Senate election in Kentucky
  • 1996 United States House of Representatives elections in Kentucky