New: a 42 y/o attorney with legit political credentials (ex-RNC, McConnell staff) filed to run against Rep. Hal Rogers, the Dean of the US House. Don't confuse this for a McConnell plant, though - he's strongly endorsing Rogers, 88, an EKY political titan. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

UPDATE: Rep. Kulkarni’s dad, Suhas Kulkarni, just filed to run for Kentucky House, saying he was spurred to do so by this bill filed yesterday that would ban immigrant citizens like himself and his daughter from holding elected office in Kentucky. Said it is time to stand up. #kyga26

Update: Rep. Baker has filed a 2nd bill proposing a KY constitutional amendment to ban immigrants & dual-citizens from holding all elected offices in the KY Constitution. It pairs with bill yesterday that banned local offices NOT in constitution. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

“We need people who are inspired by service and want to do better. I think that gets lost now,” Speaker David Osborne said.

New: A KY state rep filed a bill to ban American citizens who weren't born in the US from holding the offices of: mayor, council, fiscal court, school board and soil & water board. Ban also applies to people holding dual citizenship. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

KY Rep. Thomas Massie: “It would be sheer insanity to use military force against an ally, so any serious mention of it deserves ridicule... It’s not clear that the benefits of expanding the territory of the United States outweigh the price." www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

New: Take Kentucky off your redistricting boards. Top state GOP leader says he's spoken with WH officials, argued against it, and the issue is over "as much as anything can be." www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Lots worth checking out in this profile. Some top lines: - Stivers' work for ARC, which is under FBI investigation - why a progressive senator thinks Stivers agrees with her - what Stivers REALLY cares about - his assessment of Beshear 2028 - redistricting www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

This is a really great profile from Austin. Truly a must-read. It also features what may already be the Herald-Leader photograph of the year.

Robert Stivers just became the longest-serving senate president in the history of Kentucky & is one of its most powerful people. An inside look into how he's already shaped the state, what he wants to do next & some lingering questions about his role. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Much-deserved honor for Jon

This promises to be a weird session. No huge, looming single issue beyond the budget. But lots of pretty important items floating out in the ether. Here are 7 of those items. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Lexington mayoral candidate Rama Asmani (who is blind) has a new tagline: Vision Over Sight

In November, I submitted an open records request for Gov. Andy Beshear's past schedule. Today, the H-L sued over their denial (citing an old appellate ruling classifying gov schedule as "preliminary") of that request. Read the full lawsuit & story here. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

The year is 2026. But we're getting some early indications on the #kygov race in 2027. Comer, Adams, Coleman, Adkins & more - lots of familiar names sound like they're prepping runs. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

We've had some really excellent journalists join the Herald-Leader in the last couple months. Read all about them here, and I promise you'll wanna follow their (already very impressive) work. www.kentucky.com/news/state/k...

Ed Gallrein, the Trump-backed Republican challenger to Rep. Thomas Massie, posted a $1.2M opening fundraising quarter. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Big KY political news: the last Eastern KY Democrat left standing in Frankfort is not running for reelection. Rep. Ashley Tackett Laferty, D-Martin, says she's running for district judge. An old name in EKY Dem politics filed to replace her. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Here's the work I'm most proud of from a busy 2025. Ain't been perfect! Has been fun tho! First: this investigation into how NKY politicians pushed hard & in secret - upsetting local stakeholders - to get $125M in the budget for a school relocation. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

New: A poll from Charles Booker's team shows that Democrats are within striking distance of the US Senate race - Booker polled within single digits of Daniel Cameron & almost tied Nate Morris. However, recent history would suggest it's not that close. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Whatever happened to KentuckWired? The $1B-plus public-private partnership is still courting controversy (and lawsuits) years after bombshell reporting on its origins & cost misrepresentations. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

New: The Trump DOJ is continuing its push to collect social security & driver license info on Kentucky's 3.3M voters. We have the emails, the confidential agreement offered by the DOJ and more here. KY officials haven't said yes. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

A good reminder on an under-the-radar issue from Cheves: KY pensions are still a huge problem that requires massive chunks of money to solve. But things have been slowly improving for the last ~8 years. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

These were the 25 songs I most enjoyed in the year of our Lord 2025

Tatum Dale, Rep. Andy Barr's longtime district director, passed away last night. Dale was also serving as campaign manager for Barr's 2026 US Senate bid. RIP. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Merry Christmas! The H-L let me cook on a sports column on why UK Athletics ditching its "new" wildcat logo would be a gift to us all. www.kentucky.com/sports/colle...

Republican Party of Kentucky latest fundraising email: "Meet Charles Booker"

We've got a Thomas Massie power round in today's KY Politics Insider. The congressman talks about his new resolution push, 2027 thoughts & his primary opponent's use of what appears to be a Ukrainian model family in an ad. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

NEW: Sat down in DC with KY congressman & Dean of the US House, Hal Rogers. We talked Eastern KY & his approps record. We also discussed why he's seeking a 24th term to office (he'd start at age 89), increased scrutiny on age in DC & why he's confident he'll win. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

NEW: Immigrants who had received letters inviting them to a citizenship ceremony in downtown Louisville were turned away at the door Thursday. All are from countries deemed “high-risk” by President Donald Trump. From @byrobertor.lpm.org at @lpm.org

The suspect in a shooting that killed 1 Kentucky State University student & injured another has been identified as a 48-year-old man from Evansville, IN. More details here: www.kentucky.com/news/local/c...

The Kentucky State University campus shooter in custody was NOT a student at KSU, City of Frankfort says. www.kentucky.com/news/local/c...

At the book store:

GOP state rep Deanna Gordon is suspending her campaign for KY-06, the Central KY-based seat held by Rep. Andy Barr. That leaves 3 Republicans in the running to replace Barr, who is vying for US Senate. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

NEW: A deeper look at the issue that set Mitch Barnhart off after the Will Stein intro presser, including some specifics on what NIL deals had been approved by clearinghouse the last time Barnhart addressed Champions Blue Board about it. www.kentucky.com/sports/colle...

Shakeup on the #KYSen trail: 10 months in, Daniel Cameron's CM is leaving for a new campaign & new CM from Virginia is coming in. Cameron is leading all public polling in the 2026 GOP primary, but has lagged behind Barr & Morris in the fundraising race. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Mixed bag of results for Grossberg & enforcement counsel from this week's ethics meeting. Grossberg's 4th motion to dismiss denied, but enforcement's motion to compel release of his medical records is also denied. Public hearings set for Jan/Feb. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

PSA that: - Bobby Fuller 4 underrated in the "nice little pop bands of the 60s" discourse - Youtube Music supremacy bc you can play YT-only songs like Makeout Videotape's "Island Groovies" - It Still Moves = best MMJ record - Justin Beiber's "Swag" is, regrettably, kinda good

What was JD Vance doing in Lexington? Nothing official, and possibly nothing political, either. That & much more in latest KY Politics Insider. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

NEW: Charles Booker is in. The KY Democrat is running for US Senate again in 2026, leaning on an economic & labor message. He's running on M4A, universal child care, a $40k/yr min & says he's "ready to organize for a general strike." www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

I'm #FinewithStein

New: KY Democrats are moving on from their longtime headquarters just off I-64 to a downtown Frankfort office. Sold their Democrat Drive building to a business run by the Suff's Furniture family. www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

NEW: UK has canceled the previously scheduled athletics committee meeting for this afternoon and has no plans for a news conference today to address Mark Stoops firing. Read into that what you will about timing of a possible head coaching hire. www.kentucky.com/sports/colle...

NEW: So, who's next? Jon Sumrall and a bunch of other candidates that would have made sense went off the board today. Here are eight names to consider. www.kentucky.com/sports/colle...

In other Kentucky sports news, WKU men's hoops appears fun & frisky wkuherald.com/89310/sports...

NEW: If there is a coaching change for UK football, it will not be because Mark Stoops walked away. Quick story on his postgame comments here. www.kentucky.com/sports/colle...

Credit where it's due: Louisville had the good sense to return to the OG mid-field logos

New: JD Vance is scheduled to make an appearance in Kentucky tomorrow, and the circumstances of a “VIP arrival” at Blue Grass Airport make it seem like he flew into Lexington this evening. amp.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Was fully prepared to become a hater of The Latest Thing, but I can confirm reports that the Geese album absolutely rips www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGaf...