Kentucky Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer announced Wednesday that he will not seek reelection in 2024.
In a statement released to LINK nky by the Senate Majority Caucus, Thayer said he made the decision not to seek reelection “After conversations with my adult children, close friends and colleagues.”
“I have concluded this is the right decision,” the veteran state lawmaker said. “There are exciting private sector opportunities I wish to pursue that will require more of my time and energy, which I am currently not afforded with the great responsibility that comes with being a member of our citizen legislature.”
The Georgetown Republican has become one of the most powerful members of the Kentucky General Assembly since he was first elected to the 17th Senate District (including Grant and Scott counties and portions of Fayette and Kenton counties) in a 2003 special election. He has held the position of Majority Floor Leader since 2013, making him the longest-serving Republican Senate Majority Floor Leader in Kentucky’s history.
The last person to hold the position is current Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers (R-Manchester). Stivers commented on Thayer’s decision not to run for reelection in a statement today.
“Senator Damon Thayer has brought such conviction and passion to creating conservative legislation in Kentucky for over 22 years,” said Stivers. “I value and came to rely on the energy he poured into Senate floor activity day after day. Damon shepherded sound policy through the process, creating a business-friendly environment that’s materialized in the job growth we are seeing today. The commonwealth is better because of Damon Thayer and the Senate will miss him greatly.”
As Majority Floor Leader, Thayer guides legislative action on the floor of the Kentucky Senate. His influence has led to the passage of significant economic policies in recent years, including right-to-work and repeal of the state’s prevailing wage. More recently, Thayer supported the passage of legal sports betting, which launched statewide and at retail locations in September.
Efforts to stabilize the state’s pension systems for state employees and teachers and advance the state’s signature thoroughbred industry (that brought the Michigan native to Kentucky three decades ago) have also rolled out under Thayer’s leadership. So has legislation supporting the state’s bourbon economy – now a $9 billion industry, per the Kentucky Distillers’ Association.
“I have accomplished most of the political and policy goals I set out to achieve,” Thayer said. But he also intends to finish strong.
Conspicuously absent from his statement was any direct comment on Gov. Andy Beshear, who was inaugurated to a second term Tuesday. Beshear said during his inaugural speech at the state Capitol that Kentucky can achieve “the dream of a better Kentucky. And we can and we should realize that dream if we don’t stand in our own way.”
The working relationship between Beshear and Thayer was publicly strained during the governor’s first term. After Beshear’s reelection last month, Thayer told the Lexington Herald-Leader: “There’s no incentive or reason for us to work with him… He doesn’t deserve an opportunity for reparation, especially after the campaign.”
Although he didn’t mention the governor directly in his statement released by the caucus, Thayer made it clear that his leadership style during the 2024 legislative session would not change.
“With one year remaining in my term, I intend to pursue the policy goals of the Senate GOP with the vigor and enthusiasm people have come to expect. My focus will be a successful 2024 Legislative Session,” said the senator.