2018 Primary Election Candidate Speeches and Interviews

Below are candidate speeches and interviews from the May 22 primary election in Kentucky, recorded during KET’s election results coverage:

Victory speech from retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. Amy McGrath, Sixth Congressional District Democratic primary election winner. She finished with 48.6 percent of the vote. NOTE: KET’s live feed ended at 9 p.m., before McGrath’s speech concluded.

“Six months ago, political pundits and establishment insiders didn’t think we could pull this off,” McGrath says. “I know how it happened: It’s because you all care about the future of our country… If I’ve learned anything on this journey, I’ve learned that people want badly to believe in their leaders again.”

Concession speech from Lexington Mayor Jim Gray, Sixth Congressional District Democratic primary election candidate. Gray finished second in the race with 40.5 percent of the vote.

“Tomorrow I’ll be back at work in the mayor’s office with no regrets,” says Gray. “We can do anything when we work together. It’s a lesson that’s sorely needed in Washington today. I know that we, as a people, as a state, and as a country are much better than what we are seeing every day in Washington. So let’s turn our attention, after maybe a little break to catch our breath, to the next challenge.”

Concession speech from State Sen. Reggie Thomas, Sixth Congressional District Democratic primary election candidate. Thomas came in third with 7.2 percent of the vote.

“This was a tough race from the beginning,” Thomas says. “We had [Lt.] Col. McGrath get in and she became a national celebrity overnight… And then we had a very popular mayor who’s done a good job for this city in Jim Gray.”

Interview with Rep. Andy Barr, Sixth Congressional District Republican primary election winner. Barr won his GOP primary with 83.8 percent of the vote.

“We’re focusing on doing the job we were elected to do,” says Barr. “A booming economy… historic tax cuts that give hard-working, middle-income families in central and eastern Kentucky $2,000 in lower taxes, the fact that we’re working on strengthening our national security… We look forward to running on our record, which is a record of results and solutions.”

KET’s Casey Parker-Bell interviews Lesley Clark, reporter for McClatchy Newspapers, from the headquarters of Democratic Sixth Congressional district candidate Amy McGrath.

Renee Shaw speaks with Lexington Herald-Leader reporter John Cheves, reporting from Sixth Congressional district candidate Jim Gray’s campaign event.