Kentucky governor’s efforts to help storm-ravaged towns may dilute GOP advantage in rural areas

By BRUCE SCHREINER
Associated Press

MAYFIELD, Ky. (AP) — The time Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, has spent helping disaster-stricken places in the state like Mayfield rebuild could be a key to his reelection bid against Republican challenger Daniel Cameron, the state’s attorney general. Voters such as Gina Thorn, whose life was uprooted when a tornado tore through her hometown, told the Associated Press that Beshear deserves credit for her family’s recovery. She intends to show her appreciation by voting for the Democratic incumbent in November. Thorn’s story had a happy outcome but that hasn’t happened yet for everybody. Some storm survivors, including those in rural areas that favor Republicans, grumble about the slow pace of recovery.