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Booker defeats McGrath in Kentucky Democratic Senate primary

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by Sarah Fortinsky - 05/19/26 9:12 PM ET

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by Sarah Fortinsky - 05/19/26 9:12 PM ET

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Charles Booker is projected to win the Kentucky Democratic Senate primary on Tuesday, according to Decision Desk HQ, defeating Amy McGrath in the race to succeed retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

The victory came six years after McGrath, a retired Marine fighter pilot, narrowly defeated Booker in the primary for the seat, winning 45 percent of the vote to Booker’s 43 percent. McGrath went on to lose in the general election by nearly 20 points.

Booker, a former state representative, later mounted another Senate bid in 2022, easily winning the Democratic primary before losing to Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) by nearly 24 points.

He will face off against Rep. Andy Barr (R), who was projected to receive the GOP nod earlier Tuesday.

Booker was seen as the favorite in the race following his previous statewide campaigns and rising national profile among Democrats. Public polling in the primary was limited, but a recent Emerson College poll showed Booker leading McGrath, 36 percent to 18 percent.

He also secured the endorsement of former Rep. John Yarmuth, the sole Democratic member of Kentucky’s House delegation from 2013 until his retirement in 2023.

Booker most recently served as the head of Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s (D) Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives and told local media that he believes Democrats can flip Kentucky this year.

“We have pulled people into the coalition that voted for Trump, that voted for Bernie Sanders, that have never voted before,” Booker said. “We have done something that Kentucky has been demanding for years, and we listened to them.”

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