A central Kentucky Democrat has announced she will challenge Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in next year’s senatorial election.
Amy McGrath, 44, a former fighter pilot who lost the Sixth Congressional District House race last year to incumbent GOP Rep. Andy Barr, said Tuesday she’s running for McConnell’s senate seat. Although McGrath lost the election to Barr, she lost by only three points, 51-48 percent, in a district Donald Trump won by 15 percentage points in 2016.
McConnell, who has held his senate seat since 1984, has served as majority leader since 2007. In McConnell’s last election, he defeated Alison Lundergan Grimes by about 15 percentage points.
“It will be a spirited race,” McConnell said after McGrath’s announcement. “Particularly since I’ve become leader of my party in the senate, I’ve noticed I get more attention than I used to. And I look forward to the contest and laying out our differences to the people of Kentucky.”
McGrath graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1997. In 2014, she earned a master’s degree in international and global security studies from John Hopkins University.
During her 20-year military career, McGrath flew about 2,000 flight hours and participated in over 85 combat missions. She retired in 2017 as a Lt. Colonel.
McGrath grew up in Edgewood, in northern Kentucky, but currently lives in Georgetown.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com or 270-259-6000
