With Barr running for Senate, Kentucky House Republican declares for 6th District

Austin Horn, Lexington Herald-Leader on Apr 22, 2025

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LEXINGTON, Ky. — It didn’t take long for the race to replace Rep. Andy Barr to begin.

Thirty minutes after Barr launched his campaign to succeed Mitch McConnell in the U.S. Senate Tuesday, Kentucky House Republican Ryan Dotson announced on social media he would run for Barr’s 6th Congressional District seat.

Dotson, a business executive and pastor who has held his statehouse seat representing Clark County and a portion of South Fayette County since 2021, told followers in a Facebook video he wants to “take the fight” to Washington.

“We are going to fight for that open congressional seat, and I want to take the fight that I have taken to Frankfort, Kentucky, to Washington, DC. I am calling on all my friends, all my relatives, all of my neighbors, all of those who I will meet in the future to help me win this race. We have a strong path to victory, but we’re going to have to work very hard to get there.

“I’m sure it will be a crowded race, but I know that we can win this with the help of God,” Dotson added.

The 6th Congressional District, which is anchored by the increasingly Democratic stronghold of Lexington, was considered a swing district prior to GOP-led redistricting that removed Franklin County from the district.

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear won it handily by 20 points in 2023, and Barr has won it by a similar or even greater margin in the past three cycles.

Congressional Democrats recently put a target on the district, though it hasn’t seen a close race since Barr fended off a well-funded Democratic challenger in Amy McGrath during the 2018 cycle.

Republicans have scoffed at the notion the race to succeed Barr will be close, citing landslide victories by the Lexington Republican in the past three elections.

Fayette County makes up about 44% of the district. 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.

Dotson is one of several Republicans reportedly considering a run. The list considering their own bids includes: State Sen. Amanda Mays Bledsoe, R-Lexington; state Rep. Deanna Gordon, R-Richmond; state Rep. Matt Lockett, R-Nicholasville; and former state Senate GOP leader Damon Thayer, of Georgetown.

A handful of Democrats also are expected to consider the vacancy, including former state Rep. Cherlynn Stevenson; Rocky Adkins, a former House leader and current senior adviser to Gov. Andy Beshear; Kentucky Democratic Party Executive Director Morgan Eaves; and Kentucky Democratic Party Chair Colmon Elridge.

All are regularly mentioned as potential candidates for the soon-to-be-vacated Barr seat.