LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Democrat Amy McGrath, a retired Marine aviator, on Monday entered the Senate marketing campaign in Kentucky, vowing to be a “bulwark towards authoritarianism” in launching a comeback bid after being trounced by Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell in 2020.
McGrath joins a rising subject of Republicans and Democrats competing within the 2026 midterms for the seat occupied because the mid-Eighties by McConnell, who’s retiring when his present time period ends.
As soon as seen as a rising Democratic star in a GOP-dominated state, McGrath touted her fight expertise however misplaced elections for Congress in 2018 and the Senate two years later. McGrath flew in 89 fight missions towards al-Qaeda and the Taliban throughout her 20-year Marine profession.
“I swore an oath to defend this nation towards all enemies, international and home,” McGrath stated in an announcement Monday. “Working for Senate is an extension of that oath. I’ll be a bulwark towards authoritarianism and threats to our democracy. Even when we don’t see eye to eye on each problem, you’ll at all times know the place I stand: on the aspect of Kentucky and democracy.”
With a status for blunt discuss, McGrath condemned Republican President Donald Trump in a video asserting her candidacy Monday.
“What we’re seeing on this nation, from this president, not regular. Harmful for Kentuckians and for all People,” she stated.
McGrath stated within the assertion that she entered the race to stop a “Trump-aligned candidate from securing a straightforward path to the Senate.”
Republicans within the race embrace U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, former state Lawyer Common Daniel Cameron and businessman Nate Morris. The GOP hopefuls communicate glowingly of Trump, hoping to land his endorsement in a state that Trump overwhelmingly carried within the final three presidential elections.
Different Democrats within the Senate race embrace Pamela Stevenson, a state lawmaker and former army choose advocate normal; Logan Forsythe, an legal professional and former U.S. Secret Service agent; and Joel Willett, a army veteran and former CIA officer.
Kentucky hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Senate since Wendell Ford in 1992.
In 2020, McGrath was a prolific fundraiser as Democrats nationwide poured cash into her marketing campaign in hopes of seeing McConnell unseated. As an alternative, she was trounced as McConnell gained a seventh time period to construct on his legacy as Kentucky’s longest-serving U.S. senator.
Two years earlier, McGrath misplaced a hard-fought election to Barr in a district that stretches from central Kentucky’s bluegrass area to the Appalachian foothills. Barr received a giant increase that 12 months from Trump, who appeared at a marketing campaign rally within the district.
“Andy Barr and President Trump beat Amy McGrath as soon as, they usually’ll do it once more,” Alex Bellizzi, a Barr marketing campaign spokesman, stated in an announcement Monday.
McGrath stated Monday that this time she’s able to “full the mission.”
“I’ve spent my life stepping up when the mission was robust and the stakes had been excessive,” she stated in her assertion.
Extra lately, McGrath began Honor Sure, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to management growth for girls with a service background and encourages these girls to run for elected workplace. She additionally based a number of pro-democracy organizations.
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