1983 Kentucky gubernatorial election

Candidates

• Martha Layne Collins, incumbent Lieutenant Governor
• Harvey I. Sloane, Mayor of Louisville
• W. Grady Stumbo, former Secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Human Resources
• Ray Adkins
• Doris Shuja Binion
• Fifi Rockefeller

The Democratic race for governor was seen as a race among three major candidates.^[2] The most prominent of these candidates was Lieutenant Governor Martha Layne Collins, who had been seen as a likely candidate since she took office.^[3] With the exception of the incumbent Governor John Y. Brown Jr., the previous two Democratic governors had been Lieutenant Governors.^[4] Collins appealed to local Democratic leaders alienated by Governor Brown and his neglectful attitude towards party affairs.^[2] She focused her campaign less on issues, but more on her experience, and her visiting all of the state's 120 counties during her tenure.^[5] She also spent close $2.5 million on television advertising, more than any other candidate.^[6]

As early as 1980, Louisville mayor Harvey Sloane, would also emerge as a strong potential competitor.^[7] Sloane was the runner-up for the nomination in 1979, losing in a race so close, that he did not concede defeat until two days had passed.^[8] He had the perception of being a frontrunner, and thus was able to win over institutional support, in addition to keeping his base in Jefferson County.^[9] In 1979, Sloane ran as a liberal candidate, earning backing from unions and teachers.^[10] For his second bid, he courted the support of business groups and pro-life groups.^[11] Polls early in the race showed a close contest, with Sloane leading in northern Kentucky, and Collins running strongest in Western Kentucky and among women.^[12]

For most of the campaign, the battle was waged amongst the two frontrunners. Collins faced charges she was too soft to be governor and tried to counter them by emphasizing a tough on crime plan.^[13] She also faced sustained criticism from Sloane for using taxpayer funds during campaigning, such as having state police drive her to events, and hosting supporters in the Lieutenant Governor's mansion.^[14] At the end of April, the race remained close with Sloane only narrowly ahead of Collins in polls.^[15]

A third contender would emerge in the home stretch of the campaign: W. Grady Stumbo, a former state cabinet official and a doctor. Stumbo's campaign was seen as heavily populist,^[16] earning endorsements from labor unions.^[17][11] He also focused on his opposition to a right-to-work law and working for coal mining interests.^[13] He was also noted for being a compelling speaker, performing well in debates.^[18] In spite of this, he was merely a third place contender, lagging heavily behind the two frontrunners in fundraising and polling,^[19][17] largely being viewed as an underdog.^[6] However, he saw his fortunes turn around in the final days when Governor Brown endorsed his campaign, as a response to what he saw as the other candidates talking "...about going back to the old patronage system...".^[13] With a large polling deficit, and a large number of undecided voters, the endorsement from Brown gave Stumbo last minute momentum, generating uncertainty as to who would win in the end.^[11][13]

Results

The race ended up being close, but Collins would pull out by an exceptionally narrow margin. Sloane refused to concede the race for nearly a month after, until a recanvas showed the outcome would not change.^[20] Sloane's loss was attributed to several key factors. One was his decision to run for a second term as Mayor of Louisville, which denied him crucial time to campaign for the job of Governor, in addition to implicating him in controversies.^[21] More pertinently, his shift to the right this campaign, particularly waffling on whether he'd sign a right-to-work law and courting pro-life voters cost him with key Democratic groups who were disappointed by his shift.^[11][21][18] He also was seen as a weak speaker.^[18] Stumbo, meanwhile, performed best in Eastern Kentucky and among union voters,^[18] but lacked a strong county level organization and struggled with finances.^[16]

Candidates

• Jim Bunning, State Senate minority leader
• Lester H. Burns Jr., attorney
• Don Wiggins Jr.
• Elizabeth Bette Wickham
• Thurman Jerome Hamlin
• Ben Auxier Jr.

Whereas the Democratic race was hard-fought amongst credible challengers, the Republican side was far less notable. Republicans faced difficulty recruiting candidates this year, with their presence in the legislature at a lower point than it had been for years.^[22] However, they did manage to recruit Jim Bunning, the State Senate minority leader, who had initially declined to run.^[23][18] He received support from the state and national party, and faced only token opposition.^[24] But even amidst this seemingly unified front, there were troubles internally. Bunning refused to commit to not run for U.S. Senate in 1984, drawing the ire of the state's other prominent Republican Mitch McConnell, who had been planning to seek the seat.^[25] Furthermore, the state's sole Republican governor since 1967, Louie Nunn, admitted that Bunning could not speak to voters as well as Lester Burns, and that he did not sufficiently support Republicans, including Nunn's own comeback bid in, 1979.^[26]

Results