Republican state Sen. Whitney Westerfield plans to make another run for the state’s top law enforcement job.
Just 2,201 votes separated the Hopkinsville Republican and Democrat Andy Beshear in the 2015 race for attorney general, and Westerfield’s early entry into the 2019 field could potentially set up a rematch.
The Western Kentucky lawmaker told Spectrum News he’s not running to take down Beshear, a frequent legal foe of Gov. Matt Bevin, though he did lob a few familiar criticisms at the Democrat.
"We need an AG that's going to stand up for the rule of law and not pick and choose which cases they're going to handle and which ones they're not," Westerfield said. "And that's before we get into the conflicts of interest, which I think are legitimate or at least give the appearance of impropriety and should be avoided."
Beshear hasn’t committed to running for re-election, but a spokesperson defended his record – pointing to settlement money used to fund drug treatment programs and Beshear’s efforts to check executive power.
Westerfield says he’s learned from the previous campaign and is eying an earlier start this time, in the hopes of ramping up fundraising and reaching more parts of the state.
