Outrageous voter-fraud conspiracy proves outsiders should steer clear of Kentucky politics; not speak about things of which they’re ignorant

I had intended to use this space for a cursory analysis of the Kentucky statewide elections, which saw Republicans take the governor’s race for only the second time in the last four decades, and then offer a few ideas for Gov.-elect Matt Bevin’s administration as he moves forward.

But when I saw the completely off-the-wall conspiracy theory, posted on a couple of lunatic left-wing websites, that Bevin won only through massive voter fraud, I had to laugh.

Kentucky politics aren’t well-understood by outsiders. I’ve had many conversations with people who think the Bluegrass State is dominated by Republicans since the state has of late tended to vote for GOP candidates in federal elections. Out-of-staters don’t understand what a grip the Democrats have held on state government and many local governments as well. Twice last week I heard Bevin say on national radio shows that 72 percent of elected officials in Kentucky are Democrats, and despite gains in voter registration numbers, fewer than 40 percent of the state’s electorate checked the “R” box on their registration form.

Sadly, even some Kentuckians have bought into the election fraud theory. When someone posted a petition on change.org, demanding a federal investigation into the gubernatorial election results, a number of Kentuckians echoed that sentiment. They must not have been paying attention to what had been going on in the weeks leading up to the Nov. 3 election, or they’d be ashamed of their silliness.

Those who are alleging election fraud point to two main facts. First is that the election results were misaligned with polls that indicated Bevin would lose to Jack Conway. Those same polls got last year’s U.S. Senate race between Mitch McConnell and Alison Lundergan Grimes wrong as well. They tend to oversample Democrats, and the media outlets that commission the Bluegrass State Poll have made it known they’ll use another pollster in future years.

The second bit of “proof” that the election was tampered with, they claim, is that down-ballot candidates got more votes than did Conway, who topped his party’s ticket. They say this is unusual. In fact, it’s not unusual at all. In the last two gubernatorial elections proceeding this year’s, the Republican candidate for agriculture commissioner (Richie Farmer in 2007 and Jamie Comer in 2011) far outpaced the Democratic gubernatorial nominee. And the two Democrats who did win statewide elections have well-known fathers. Andy Beshear is the son of sitting governor Steve Beshear. And Alison Lundergan Grimes is the daughter of longtime party operative and former Democrat chairman Jerry Lundergan. The names Beshear and Lundergan carry a lot of weight in “D” circles in Kentucky, and both candidates had a great deal of name recognition. Even though Steve Beshear and Jerry Lundergan don’t like each other very much, they are the leaders of the state’s Democrats, so it’s natural that support would flow to their children.

To further display their cluelessness, the conspiracy theorists said the election had been rigged by GOP insiders. What more proof does one need than that statement that they have no clue what happened? As secretary of state, Grimes is in charge of elections in Kentucky. It’s highly unlikely that she would allow Republicans to steal a race. And Bevin was not exactly the darling of the Republican establishment in Kentucky. He beat Comer, the establishment’s preferred candidate, in the primary; but more importantly, he dared to challenge Mitch McConnell in last year’s U.S. Senate primary. He ran a doggedly independent race against Conway, and some observers even speculated that the party’s hierarchy wasn’t 100 percent in support of him because they felt if he won, it would make “flipping” the House of Representatives to a Republican majority that much harder.

Why, then, did Bevin surprise the pollsters and sweep to victory and leave liberals scrambling to invent out-in-left-field reasons for the result? Lots of pundits have put forth their theories, but there’s a simple explanation that sums it up. In short, Bevin outworked Conway. Anytime there was a candidate forum, a public gathering, a small town festival or parade or other event, it seemed Bevin was there, and Conway wasn’t. Bevin went out and connected with the people of Kentucky. Conway ignored advice from his own party that he needed to be a better retail politician. While Conway spent time with rich donors who didn’t need to be convinced to vote for him, Bevin went straight to the people. Bevin ran a great campaign and Conway was terrible.

Of course, issues played a role. Obamacare, religious freedom and support of Kentucky’s coal industry were key. So were taxes, jobs and education. In numbers greater than anyone expected, the voters who did turn out decided overwhelmingly that the party that’s controlled Kentucky for decades has done a poor job, and gave the reins to someone else.

So shortly after midnight on Dec. 8, Matt Bevin will take the oath of office as governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He’ll have to plunge immediately into the dual tasks of setting up his administration and preparing for a legislative session. Make no mistake: He earned this opportunity, and this responsibility, honorably and honestly. Nothing fishy happened here, despite what some leftists who are distant from Kentucky and disconnected from reality might have you believe.