Beshear urges Democrats to lead with costs and authenticity in 2026 governor races

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday called on Democrats seeking governorships in 2026 to center their campaigns on solutions for the economic pressures facing working families and to speak more personally about the values and faith that motivate them. Beshear, who chairs the Democratic Governors Association heading into November’s midterms, outlined the party’s strategy in a sit-down interview with The Associated Press from Frankfort, Kentucky. Thirty-six governor’s races are on the ballot this year as Democrats seek to build on their 2025 victories in Virginia and New Jersey.

With Democratic governors framing themselves as a check on the Trump administration’s domestic agenda, Beshear said the party’s candidates must go on offense over federal spending cuts to health care and food programs while also drawing a more personal connection with voters who, he said, are hungry for authenticity.

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday called on Democrats seeking governorships this year to center their campaigns on solutions for the economic pressures facing working families and to speak more personally about the values and faith that motivate them, while going on offense against President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans over federal cuts to health care and food programs.

Beshear, who chairs the Democratic Governors Association heading into November’s midterms, laid out the party’s strategy in a sit-down interview with The Associated Press. Thirty-six governor’s races are on the ballot this year as Democrats seek to build on their 2025 victories in Virginia and New Jersey.

“I believe that Americans are craving authenticity right now,” Beshear said. “They want to know you. They want to at least know what drives you. Because if they’re going to cast their vote for you, believing that you will make their life better, they want you to know that something is driving you to do that that is real and important to you.”

Telling the ‘why’

Beshear, who frequently cites his Christian faith when explaining his policy positions, said openness can take many forms — describing the experience that first motivated a candidate to seek office, discussing their upbringing, or explaining how their faith or values inform their views.

“I call that the ‘why,’” he said. “Democrats are very good at the ‘what.’ We put out huge policy papers, but we don’t talk enough about the ‘why.’ And so if that’s somebody’s faith, then yes, they ought to be talking about it because that’s intrinsically them.”

Beshear predicted Democrats will gain governorships in 2026, with a strategy focused on jobs, health care, housing, education, public safety and transportation.

Going on offense over spending cuts

Beshear said Democratic candidates should be on offense over the Republican tax and spending law championed by Trump. The legislation, enacted last year, delivered $4.5 trillion in tax breaks while cutting more than $1 trillion over a decade from federal health care and food assistance programs, largely by imposing work requirements on aid recipients and shifting certain federal costs onto the states.

“I think that every Democratic candidate ought to be standing in front of the clinic that is closed because of these cuts,” Beshear said. “I think that every Democratic candidate needs to talk about how many more people are at a food bank because the food assistance is no longer there.”

“It’s both an issue of the economy and affordability helping people get by,” he added. “But it’s also a case of just morality. Who cares about you and who is making it that much harder just to survive?”

Beshear said Democratic governors also represent a line of defense against what he called the Trump administration’s overreach. “When we elect Democratic governors, it helps the people of that state immensely,” he said.

ICE enforcement tactics

Beshear condemned the tactics of federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials during Trump’s immigration crackdown. He cited the fatal shooting of a woman by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis, which sparked protests across the country.

“I believe the American people, by and large, believe that ICE is going too far,” Beshear said. “I think the American people rightfully believe that we need real border security, and the borders should matter and that we have to enforce our laws. But how we do it reflects our humanity. And what you see is a highly aggressive agency in ICE. … And this level of aggressiveness is resulting in things like we saw in Minneapolis.”

Republican response

The Republican Governors Association pushed back on Beshear’s framing. “Americans in states across the country have seen the stark difference in Republican versus Democrat leadership,” said Kollin Crompton, the RGA’s deputy communications director, in a statement Monday evening. “It’s a fact that Republican-led states are more affordable and safer, while Democrat-led states are in fiscal crisis, more expensive” and plagued by crime and homelessness, Crompton said.

“Looking ahead to 2026 — Democrats running at the gubernatorial level have records they cannot defend,” Crompton added.

2028 question

Beshear, who is term-limited as Kentucky governor, was noncommittal when asked about a potential 2028 Democratic presidential campaign. He rose to prominence by winning three elections in Republican-trending Kentucky — once for attorney general and twice for governor — defeating Trump-backed opponents in both gubernatorial contests.

He said he will travel the country this year campaigning for Democratic gubernatorial nominees, including candidates in presidential swing states. In Kentucky, Beshear last week called for greater state investments in housing, education and health care in a budget address to the state’s Republican-supermajority legislature.