Who is running for Central Kentucky's 6th Congressional District seat? See the list

Rep. Andy Barr has been a steady presence in his 12-plus years as congressman for the Central Kentucky-based 6th Congressional District.

Now, as he eyes winning a seat in the U.S. Senate in 2026, the primaries to replace him are becoming the most crowded of any in recent Kentucky history.

Three candidates on each side of the aisle have signed up to run for Barr’s seat, which is seen as leaning Republican but within reach for Democrats.

Among them are two current state representatives, a former state representative, a former Lexington councilperson and a former state senator. All have some amount of name ID and all have shown some ability to fundraise.

So far, their messages on the issues have been similar. The Republicans have hewn closely to President Donald Trump, and the Democrats have largely decried the president’s actions.

The 6th Congressional District is anchored by Fayette County, which makes up about 44% of its population. The county’s centrality is a part of the reason why, with Barr gone, some Democrats think they could flip the district blue for the first time since 2012. Fayette County has reliably voted Democrat in most recent elections.

The other counties in the 6th Congressional District, in order of population, are: Madison, Scott, Jessamine, Montgomery, Woodford, Mercer, Bourbon, Garrard, Fleming, Estill, Powell and Nicholas.

Aside from Fayette, the other counties in the district generally lean Republican.

Here’s who is running for the 6th Congressional District seat:

Deanna Gordon, Richmond Republican

A four-term state representative whose district covers much of the growing Madison County community, Gordon threw her hat in the ring in early July.

She called herself a “true Trump MAGA voice” in her announcement, emphasizing her support for job growth and her opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and “transgender ideology.”

An audiologist by trade, Gordon helped build Bluegrass Hearing, a company that grew to become the largest of its kind in the state. She sold in 2018.

Gordon, 55, has focused her early messaging on her small business background, saying she would serve the “working class, not the Wall Street elite.”

Gordon’s entry into Kentucky politics started with a bang.

She defeated C. Wesley Morgan, a controversial politician who ruffled feathers within the party ranks, in a GOP primary contest in 2018 and survived a tight challenge — winning by just 24 votes — in the general election against Morgan Eaves, who is now the executive director of the Kentucky Democratic Party.

Since gaining office, Gordon has kept a relatively low profile in the General Assembly, serving on various committees and paying close attention to local issues like the disarmament process at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Madison County.

Cherlynn Stevenson, Lexington Democrat

Former state Rep. Cherlynn Stevenson was the first of three Democrats to jump in the race for the 6th Congressional District.

Stevenson, 48, of Lexington, has staked her candidacy on knowing how to win a Republican-leaning district. She served in one of the few politically “purple” districts in the state, winning tight election after tight election, before losing to Vanessa Grossl, R-Georgetown, by a narrow margin in 2024.

Before being unseated, Stevenson was seen as a likely candidate to become the top Democrat in the state House.

Stevenson has secured the endorsements of several key Central Kentucky Democrats, most notably Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman. The list also includes Fayette County Attorney Angela Evans, state Sen. Reggie Thomas and several of her former colleagues in the state House.

She has been sharply critical of Trump’s economic policies in her campaign and believes that a backlash to those decisions will help Democrats in the general election.

“You know, we see tariffs that are hurting our local economies and threatening a lot of jobs. We see people that are worried that the Social Security benefits aren’t going to be there, that Medicaid and Medicare are in danger,” Stevenson said.

Stevenson led the Democrats in fundraising as of June 30 with about $168,000 on hand.

Ralph Alvarado, Winchester Republican

Ralph Alvarado is the latest Republican to have thrown his hat into the ring for the 6th Congressional District.

The former state senator from Winchester, a doctor by trade, was a mainstay in Kentucky politics before he took a role leading the Tennessee Department of Health in 2023.

Alvarado’s political career began with a history-making win in 2014 when he became the first Hispanic member of the Kentucky General Assembly. He got a big boost later when he was the only Hispanic person to speak at the Republican National Convention in 2016, the year Trump first assumed office, and then was tapped as former Gov. Matt Bevin’s running mate in 2019.

Though Bevin lost, Alvarado, 55, remained in the General Assembly, chairing his Senate Health & Welfare Committee before taking the role in Tennessee.

In his announcement for office, Alvarado pitched himself as a “reinforcement” for Trump in Congress who would prioritize border security.

“Kentuckians are fed up with open borders, sky-high prices, and unelected bureaucrats who trample our freedoms. I’m running for Congress to fight for working families, stop the invasion at our southern border once and for all, and fight the woke agenda,” Alvarado said.

David Kloiber, Lexington Democrat

Also running with strong political ties in Lexington is former city Councilman David Kloiber.

Kloiber has emphasized the importance of increasing access to affordable housing, alleviating high costs of health care, creating jobs and providing quality public education in his run.

He’s also struck a somewhat less Trump-oriented message than his Democratic peers.

“All politics is local,” Kloiber said. “And too often we get caught up in national things that might not even impact us.”

The former councilman runs the Kloiber Foundation, a nonprofit providing students and teachers in Fayette County Public Schools and surrounding counties with necessary technology.

Kloiber also helps manage his family trust, which is likely worth more than $1 billion, according to a Herald-Leader story from the 2022 campaign. His father put $310 million in the trust in 2008, funds earned from his share of the sale of a Lexington company.

Kloiber ran unsuccessfully against Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton in 2022.

As of June 30, Kloiber was not far behind Stevenson in the fundraising race. He had $135,000 at that time, thanks in large part to personal loans he has given his campaign.

Ryan Dotson, Winchester Republican

Rep. Ryan Dotson, R-Winchester, has tried to establish himself as the furthest right of any in the race.

“The people, especially true conservatives, are tired of politics as usual. They’re looking for a candidate who’s real, who’s not a career politician,” Dotson said. “Everybody that comes into this race will be to my left, and people will know that.”

The first to enter the race, Dotson had been hinting at his interest for some time before Barr announced his intentions to seek the U.S. Senate seat. He has held his statehouse seat representing Clark County and a portion of South Fayette County since 2021

Dotson, 52, is a businessman and pastor. His church is in Winchester, and he’s owned franchise restaurants as well as local businesses.

In the General Assembly, Dotson helped lead the fight in 2022 for a bill to ban transgender women from women’s sports at public schools and universities, overcoming Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto.

Two years later, he successfully sponsored a bill that struck down local ordinances in Lexington and Louisville that protected the right of tenants to use federal low-income housing vouchers, such as Section 8 vouchers. Again, his bill overcame a veto from Beshear.

As of June 30, Dotson had $94,198. The majority of the money he raised came via loans from his own pocketbook.

Zach Dembo, Lexington Democrat

Zach Dembo is a former federal prosecutor and U.S. Navy veteran running as a Democrat for the 6th Congressional District.

Like his Democratic competitors, Dembo is focusing the early days of his campaign on jobs, pushing back on the cuts to Medicaid that were recently enacted, and doing more to strengthen the economy and help cost of living issues in Central Kentucky.

Dembo, 39, has pitched his public service background as the distinguishing factor in the Democratic primary. In addition to his service to the federal government, he also worked in Beshear’s office during the governor’s first time. He said he left his role as a federal prosecutor over dissatisfaction with how the Department of Justice was operating under Trump.

“I resigned because I couldn’t in good principle serve in this administration, with the corruption and with them playing politics with the department and the justice system,” Dembo said.

Dembo has not held elected office, unlike the other five candidates running. He is a Lexington native who has lived in the area since early 2020.