Kelly Craft, the former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and Canada in President Donald Trump’s administration, has joined the field of Republicans seeking the nomination for Kentucky governor in 2023. She is the fifth Republican in the race.
Craft, who grew up in Barren County, launched her campaign website on Wednesday. It features a video that focuses on her childhood home and influences around Glasgow.
“There are tough decisions being made every day around kitchen tables in Kentucky,” Craft says on the website. “We’re in rough times and people need help. Our state has been battered by storms. Our national politics are strained and angry. You’ve heard promises before. Sweet words then no action. The language of politics has been abused and misused. Which makes it so difficult to try and make an honest connection. I will seek to repair the connection between the people and their leadership, to give back to Kentucky a core of honesty and compassion.”
Also seeking the GOP nomination are state Auditor Mike Harmon, Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles, Attorney General Daniel Cameron, state Rep. Savannah Maddox. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear is running for a second term in office.
Kelly Craft’s plan to run for governor had been rumored for several months.
Craft and her husband, ultrawealthy coal executive Joe Craft, have been major donors to Republican candidates for state and national office.
Last month at a charity auction the Crafts joined Central Bank and Trust Co. in a $5 million bid to win the Kentucky State Fair grand champion country ham from Broadbent Country Hams.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
