By Hawkins Teague
Murray Ledger & Times
With the 143rd annual Fancy Farm Picnic less than a month away, both Gov. Andy Beshear and his challenger, Attorney General Daniel Cameron, both confirmed this week that they will be attending.
Fancy Farm is always the first Saturday in August and is the biggest fundraiser of the year for Fancy Farm’s St. Jerome Catholic Church in Graves County. According to the church’s website, the event started as a small church picnic, but by the early 1900s, it had become a must-stop event for politicians running for office. Political speaking begins at 2 p.m. (CDT) Saturday, Aug. 5, at the church’s pavilion, and the event is sure to get plenty of national attention, especially since the governor’s race is one of the country’s most closely-watched elections this year.
Steven Elder, a member of St. Jerome who is in charge of booking the political speakers, said the picnic committee plans throughout the year, but arrangements really start to get rolling in January. With 2023 being one of Kentucky’s off-year elections — with contests for the governor’s mansion and numerous other constitutional offices — he believes interest will be high.
“This year is going to be unique in terms of the number of speakers that we’re going to have,” Elder said. “I actually enjoy having the off-year elections, rather than being lumped in with the presidential elections because it makes Fancy Farm unique and keeps us relevant. This year is one of those years where all your constitutional offices are up for grabs, so it’s exciting and all the invitations have gone out.”
Many Republicans have advocated for Kentucky to move its constitutional officer elections to presidential election years, claiming that turnout would be increased and that it would save counties money by holding fewer elections. Elder said there are legitimate arguments for and against this move, but for now, he is happy that Fancy Farm will be teeming with so many candidates in a year when many states aren’t holding elections.
“I guess the Republicans are wanting the presidential election years because you could nationalize it and it would help their cause,” Elder said. “I guess I understand that and I get that, and Democrats don’t want that to happen because they don’t want it nationalized and they want it more local and separate. So I probably understand both sides and why they, for their own benefit or not, want it to change or keep it the same. I don’t necessarily think it costs that much more money (to hold off-year elections), but I obviously enjoy having the picnic and want it to be successful. I also like it separated because you have more focus on your individualized races that way, and it’s not all top of the ticket or straight ticket down.”
Republican Attorney General David Cameron is running to unseat Beshear, who is hoping to follow in the footsteps of his father, Steve Beshear, as a two-term Democratic governor in a state dominated by the Republican Party. Both candidates had been somewhat late to confirm whether or not they would be speaking at Fancy Farm this year, but Cameron confirmed Wednesday and Beshear confirmed on Thursday afternoon.
In every Kentucky gubernatorial election dating back to the 1990s, candidates chose their running mates while they were running in the primary for their party’s nomination. However, the General Assembly changed the law in 2020 to allow nominees to wait until the second Tuesday in August — which will be Aug. 8 this year — to name a running mate. Although Beshear is sticking with Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, Cameron has not yet announced his pick, seemingly using the new law to his advantage to capitalize on the news cycle once he does.
“What’s unique about this year is that Daniel Cameron hasn’t announced a lieutenant governor candidate, so that spot (on the speaker roster) is open, assuming that he announces one prior to the picnic,” Elder said. “He doesn’t have to; he’s got a few more days after the picnic, but it would be a great opportunity for whoever the lieutenant governor candidate on the Republican side will be to use that platform to speak.”
Besides Cameron and Beshear, the confirmed speakers running for election so far include agriculture commissioner candidates Jonathan Shell (R) and Sierra Enlow (D); state treasurer candidates Mark Metcalf (R) and Michael Bowman (D); state auditor candidate and current Treasurer Allison Ball (R); attorney general candidates Russell Coleman (R) and Pam Stevenson (D); and Secretary of State Michael Adams (R), who is running for re-election. Elder said he is still waiting for confirmations from Democrats Kim Reeder, who is running for auditor, and Buddy Wheatley, who is running for secretary of state.
Several other elected officials who are not on the ballot this year are also scheduled to speak, including District 1 Congressman James Comer (R), outgoing Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles (R), outgoing State Auditor Mike Harmon (R), District 1 State Sen. Jason Howell (R-Murray) and District 2 State Sen. Richard Heath (R-Mayfield). Quarles has been widely rumored to be one of the prime possibilities for Cameron’s running mate, and Elder said if that were to be announced ahead of the picnic, he could easily slide into the speaking slot reserved for lieutenant governor candidates.
“We don’t approve any of their messages (ahead of time), so he could speak about the weather, I guess, if he wanted to,” Elder said with a chuckle. “But folks like himself typically will kind of have a victory lap. He’s had eight years as ag commissioner and I know he’s very proud of the department, so I would guess he’s probably going to work that angle.”
Although a certain degree of heckling is to be expected at Fancy Farm, Elder said loud boos weren’t quite as prevalent when he was growing up, and he hoped the crowd would be respectful and listen to what each speaker has to say regardless of their own views.
“People are obviously super passionate about politics, and it’s a big year, (especially with) a Democratic governor in a very deep red state who is fairly popular,” Elder said. “It’s a challenge in terms of the citizens who really like him and want it to stay that way, while the other side wants to bring in somebody that’s more to their liking. … To yell the whole time while someone is talking is not what the picnic (is supposed to be). We want it to be enjoyable, a lot of fun and for speakers to have some one-liners, but ultimately, it’s a platform for all our leaders to be onstage together. Where else do you have that? Fancy Farm provides that platform.”
This story was previously published at Kentucky Today