Voters turned out across Wayne County on Tuesday to cast their ballots in the primary elections. With all polling places along with early voting fully reporting, a total of 4,781 ballots were successfully cast across the county. The evening was highlighted by wins from all four incumbent magistrates; while the county will have a new County Attorney and Sheriff.
For the 52nd Representative District seat in the State House, Kevin G. Jones won a substantial victory over Michael Jonah Neal, outpolling his opponent by a count of 3,000 votes to 802 votes in Wayne County. Outside of Wayne County, the race was significantly tighter, with Jones taking about 53.4% of the combined McCreary and Pulaski vote to Neal’s 46.6%. However, Jones’s strong 79% performance in Wayne County carried him to a decisive victory overall. Kevin G. Jones: 5,429 votes (65%) Michael Jonah Neal: 2,922 votes (35%)
Local Wayne County administrative offices also saw clear outcomes. In the race for County Attorney, Rhett Ramsey secured a victory by receiving 3,004 votes to defeat Travis Wayne Bell, who obtained 1,070 votes.
The contest for Wayne County Sheriff proved to be a close one, with Cody Ryan Neal prevailing over Timothy B. Catron. Neal finished with 2,174 votes compared to Catron’s 1,906 votes.
Magisterial district contests also brought clear decisions for the incumbents. In the Magistrates race for District #1, Ronnie Turner won the Magistrate seat with 546 votes over Robert “Eddie” Norfleet, who received 244 votes.
Magistrate District #2, Jeffrey Darrell Dishman won the Magistrate race with 569 votes. Scottie Wayne Hicks finished second with 365 votes, and Bobby Dwain Stinson received 145 votes.
For Constable District #2, Jimmy O. Dishman took the lead with 343 votes, followed by Danny Wallace with 201 votes, Keith Cash with 181 votes, and Rodney Lowe with 154 votes.
In the 3rd Magisterial District, Wade Dick claimed victory in the Magistrate race after pulling 511 votes. Ray C. Upchurch finished second with 374 votes, and Austin Vaughn received 42 votes. Dick will be the only county official to see an opponent in November as he will face Democrat challenger, David Bell.
In the 4th Magisterial District, Jonathan M. Dobbs won a decisive victory for the Magistrate seat, earning 864 votes. James B. Sloan finished second with 298 votes, and Matthew Mills finished third with 86 votes.
In the non-partisan race for District Judge of the 40th Judicial District, 2nd Division, Tom Simmons led the three-candidate field by drawing 2,220 votes. Athena Cooper Bradshaw secured second place in the county with 1,323 votes, while Lee Whittenburg finished third with 959 votes. It will be Simmons and Bradshaw vying for the position in November as they were the top two vote getters. Athena Cooper Bradshaw: 6,975 votes Tom Simmons: 4,296 votes Lee Whittenburg: 1,739 votes
In the highly watched Republican primary for the United States Senate, U.S. Representative Andy Barr clinched the statewide nomination to advance to the November ballot. In Wayne County, Barr won a decisive victory, capturing 2,407 votes. Former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron finished second locally, receiving 1,064 votes. The remainder of the crowded Republican field finished behind the frontrunners in local tallies: Nate Morris received 156 votes, George Washington took 84 votes, Valerie “Dr Val” Fredrick drew 44 votes, and Jonathan M. Holliday secured 31 votes. Meanwhile, James D. Duncan and Michael James Faris tied with 24 votes each, followed closely by Anissa Catlett with 22 votes, Andrew “Nick” Shelley with 15 votes, Jimmy I. Leon with 7 votes, and Donald Wenzel with 5 votes.
On the Democratic side of the U.S. Senate ticket, former State Representative Charles Booker emerged as the statewide victor, setting up a major November showdown against Barr. However, Wayne County’s Democratic voters bucked the broader statewide trend, favoring Marine veteran Amy McGrath. McGrath led the local vote with 235 votes, while Booker finished second in the county with 171 votes. Among the other Democratic candidates, Logan Forsythe received 26 votes, Pamela Stevenson secured 22 votes, Vincent Anthony Thompson earned 18 votes, Dale Lewis Romans pulled 13 votes, and Joshua Blanton Sr. finished with 11 votes.
In the race for U.S. Representative from the 5th Congressional District, longtime incumbent Hal Rogers secured a commanding victory among his hometown Wayne County voters, pulling in 3,001 votes. Challenger Kevin Smith finished second with 495 votes, followed by Benjamin Hurley with 125 votes, Jerry Lee Shelton with 100 votes, and Brandon R. Monhollen with 60 votes.
