Kentucky Election Results: Zach Dembo Flips 6th District as GOP Retains Key Seats

Democrat Zach Dembo flipped Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District on Tuesday night, defeating Republican Ralph Alvarado in a district that voted for President Donald Trump by 15 percentage points in 2024, The Courier Journal and LPM reported. With 99% of votes counted, Dembo won 52.7% to Alvarado’s 43.3%, according to the Associated Press figures cited by LPM, while The Courier Journal reported Dembo leading 53% with 74% of votes counted at 9:15 p.m.

This marks the first time in more than 15 years that Central Kentucky will send a Democrat to the U.S. House. The seat was considered solidly red by pollsters and only moved into toss-up territory in the final months of the race. Dembo, a Navy veteran and former federal prosecutor who briefly served as legislative director for Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, will take over for Republican Andy Barr, who is projected to have won Kentucky’s open U.S. Senate seat.

Andy Barr, Zach Dembo speak following Election Day wins

A Night of Incumbent Survival Elsewhere

While the 6th District changed hands, voters returned four incumbents to Washington and elected one new Republican. Republican James Comer cruised to victory in the 1st District, defeating Democrat John “Drew” Williams with a massive fundraising advantage—outspending his opponent by more than $3 million, The Courier Journal reported. Comer, who has represented the western Kentucky district since 2016 and is widely expected to run for governor in 2027, was projected as the winner just before 8 p.m.

Brett Guthrie won another term in the 2nd District with 61% of the vote against Democrat Megan Wingfield, a Bowling Green mechanic. Guthrie, in office since 2009, now chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee. In Louisville, Democrat Morgan McGarvey held off Republican challenger Maria Rodriguez with 76% of the vote, the strongest margin of any Kentucky House race. Rodriguez, a Cuban immigrant and trauma nurse who moved to Louisville in 2009, ran on a platform opposing socialism. Hal Rogers, the longest-serving current member of the House, won a 24th term in the 5th District with 67% against Democrat Ned Pillersdorf, a well-known attorney who argued that Rogers, who will be 89 when Congress reconvenes in 2027, is too old to represent the district.

Kentucky Election Results: Zach Dembo Flips 6th District as GOP Retains Key Seats — Photo: yahoo.com

Trump’s Endorsement Powers Gallrein in Northern Kentucky

In the 4th District, Republican Ed Gallrein defeated Democrat Melissa Strange and Libertarian Jeremy Todd with 53% of the vote, completing a campaign that began when he knocked off incumbent Thomas Massie in the May primary. Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL and longtime farmer in Shelby County who has never held elected office, was recruited to run by President Trump, who appeared with him at rallies in Northern Kentucky in March and October. Gallrein’s victory underscores Trump’s influence in Kentucky Republican primaries, even as his approval rating is net -12% in Kentucky according to Civiqs polling.

An Independent Voice in a Red District

Dembo’s victory in the 6th District flipped a district that voted for Trump by 15 percentage points in 2024. During his acceptance speech at Central Bank Center in Lexington, Dembo framed his win as a mandate for change rather than partisan victory.

“The status quo isn’t working.

Washington isn’t working,” Dembo said.

“And it’s time to send an independent voice from Kentucky whose family has been here for nine generations to clean it up.”

Democrat Zach Dembo won election in Kentucky’s 6th district, defeating Republican Ralph Alvarado and flipping the third GOP-held seat of the night. https://t.co/gc30e7n6nC

— https://x.com/WSJ/status/2117823538409160735

Dembo left his role at the U.S. Department of Justice early in Trump’s second term over disagreements with the administration’s political priorities, and his campaign focused on reversing policies he says have made life more expensive for Central Kentuckians, including blanket tariffs and the war in Iran. He has promised to root out corruption in Washington and overhaul campaign finance laws, positioning himself as a prosecutor rather than a career politician. Despite winning in Trump country, Dembo expressed willingness to work with the president on issues specific to the district.

“I hope there are things he wants to work together on for the Kentucky sixth, and if he does, I’d be happy to work with him,” Dembo said. “And if he doesn’t, I’m going to oppose him. All that matters is what he’s doing to the Kentucky sixth.”

Gov. Andy Beshear, who introduced Dembo at the victory event, characterized the result as proof that Democrats can compete anywhere.

“Tonight we sent a message from right here in the Sixth District that Democrats can win anywhere and we should be fighting everywhere,” Beshear said.

Zach Dembo gives a victory speech at his election party in Lexington, Kentucky on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026 — Photo: lpm.org

Alvarado, Kentucky’s first Hispanic state senator who previously served as Tennessee’s health commissioner, conceded the race while distancing himself from Trump in the general election after campaigning heavily on the president’s endorsement in the primary.

“I would not have traded the journey we have taken together really for anything,” Alvarado said in his concession speech. “Because campaigns are about more than election results. They’re about people.”

The 6th District had not seen a Democrat come close to winning since 2018, when Amy McGrath challenged Barr, though 2022 redistricting made the seat lean more Republican. Still, it remains Kentucky’s most purple House district, and Beshear won it by an even larger margin than Trump in 2024. Whether Dembo can hold the seat in a presidential year remains the open question as Kentucky’s congressional delegation heads into the 119th Congress with five Republicans and one Democrat.