Steve Beshear/Jerry Abramson Campaign Declare Raising $1.5 Million Since Primary Election.

Beshear campaign says it has raised $1.5 million since primary
By Beth Musgrave

FRANKFORT — The re-election campaign of Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear has raised $1.5 million for the general election since the May 17 primary, said campaign manager Bill Hyers.

Beshear and running mate Jerry Abramson also filed a 30-day post primary report that shows the campaign raised $134,605 over the past month for the primary election. Since Beshear had no opponent in the Democratic primary, most of the $4.9 million he raised for that election is expected to be transferred to his general election campaign fund.

Republican gubernatorial nominee David Williams and running mate Richie Farmer reported raising $92,787 for their primary election effort during the May 3 to June 16 time period, bringing their total for the primary election to $1.37 million.

Williams had two primary opponents — Louisville businessman Phil Moffett and Jefferson County Clerk Bobbie Holsclaw. Williams won with 48 percent of the vote.

The Williams-Farmer campaign has not yet said how much it has raised for the general election, but the campaign did hold a fund-raiser in Lexington last week. The candidates reported raising more than $500,000 at the event, which featured Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour. However, that fund-raiser will not be reported to the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance until October.

“We have numerous events on the books and our fundraising is going extremely well for the general election,” said Luke Marchant, campaign manager for the Williams-Farmer campaign. “We are well on our way to raising the resources necessary to run a full blown media, grassroots, and policy-oriented campaign for governor.”

Independent candidate Gatewood Galbraith and his running mate Dea Riley have not yet turned in the required signatures to get on the ballot, but have until August to do so. They are not required to file a campaign finance report until their candidacy is official.