Former United Nations Ambassador Kelly Craft announced she is running for governor, ending months of speculation.
Craft served under former President Donald Trump as an ambassador to Canada and then for the U.N. On her campaign website, she said she wants to make a connection with Kentuckians because political discourse on both the national and state level is often misused.
“I will seek to repair the connection between the people and their leadership, to give back to Kentucky a core of honesty and compassion,” Craft said on her run 2023 for the Kentucky governor’s house.
She joins a crowded Republican field in Kentucky with two Northern Kentuckians also on the list in Rep. Savannah Maddox (R-Dry Ridge) and former attorney Eric Deters. The list further includes Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles, Attorney General Daniel Cameron, and Auditor Mike Harmon.
While Craft served under Trump, the former president has already endorsed Cameron, a protégé of Sen. Mitch McConnell who attended the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville.
When Maddox announced her candidacy earlier in June, she told LINK nky that she wasn’t sure what the former president would do, but that he had endorsed her in her run for the House in 2018.
“I have no idea of knowing what President Trump will do in the future, but I do know he has endorsed me in the past,” Maddox said.
While Craft might not have the endorsement of her former boss, she has very deep pockets.
In a campaign email, Gov. Andy Beshear called out Craft for spending $2.5 million on a ham at this year’s Kentucky Farm Bureau’s annual ham breakfast at the state fair. She bought it for $4.8 million last year. The money goes to charity.
“Craft is a billionaire who just spent $2.5 million on a ham at the state fair this week,” Beshear’s campaign email said. “If she’ll spend that much on ham, we know she’ll spend even more to buy this governor’s seat.”
Craft hasn’t announced her running mate, though Kentucky Fried Politics recently reported that Sen. Max Wise (R-Campbellsville) told friends he had accepted an offer from her.
“Kentucky Fried Politics first reported that Wise would be her running mate, and now a source close to Wise is sharing information directly from Wise, who is informing friends that he has accepted a slot as her running mate for Lt. Governor and asking for support in the race,” Nick Storm reported.
It’s unclear if Craft will be the last candidate to enter the race, with rumors also suggesting that former governor Matt Bevin is also considering a run. Either way, the Republican gubernatorial primary is the race to watch next May.
“I am running for the people of the state I love, the people with whom I’ve grown up, and to honor the parents who cared so much for me, showed me what life is, taught me real values, loved me, and loved the state they worked throughout their lives,” Craft said.
