Bluegrass Politics » Garland “Andy” Barr

Chandler, Barr raise big money for 2012 U.S. House race

Jack Brammer — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 18:34:27 +0000

FRANKFORT – Democratic U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler raised $228,727 in the last three months for his re-election campaign while a Republican challenger, Andy Barr, reported taking in $197,213 in the first three weeks of his campaign. The candidates for Central Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District have filed their campaign finance reports for April 1 through June 30 with the Federal Elections Commission. Barr, a Lexington attorney, announced his candidacy for next year’s race on June 9 and started his fundraising then. He narrowly lost to Chandler in last year’s race. The latest campaign finance reports show Chandler, a Woodford County attorney who has been in the U.S. House since February 2004, with $561,419 on hand. Barr reported $202,988 on hand. He said he had “a little left over from the 2010 campaign” to add to his latest fundraising. The Barr campaign said the report exceeded his fundraising for any quarter during the 2010 primary election. He had not yet declared his candidacy in June 2009. -- Jack Brammer

Andy Barr announces 2012 campaign for Congress

Jack Brammer — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:39:00 +0000

FRANKFORT -- Lexington attorney Andy Barr, who fell short just 648 votes last year in representing Central Kentucky's 6th Congressional District, announced Thursday that he will seek the same seat in 2012. Barr, a Republican, said in a statement that his "top priority will be to stop Washington’s reckless spending spree and work to avert a national debt crisis." The congressional seat is now held by Democrat Ben Chandler of Woodford County.

Andy Barr concedes defeat to Ben Chandler

Accountability Editor — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 20:53:10 +0000

By Beth Musgrave and Jack Brammer Republican Andy Barr conceded defeat to Democratic U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler on Friday, 10 days after voters cast their ballots in Central Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District. “I can find no substantial reason or compelling evidence that would justify a petition for a recount,” Barr said during a news conference in Lexington at the Fayette County Republican Party headquarters. Barr said he called Chandler shortly before making the announcement and congratulated the now five-term congressman on his narrow win. Barr would not answer questions about his political future, including whether he would challenge Chandler again in two years. The Lexington lawyer said he looks forward to returning to private practice. Barr, 36, also announced that he and his wife Carol were expecting a daughter in April. Earlier in the day, a recanvass of vote machines in the district’s 16 counties showed Chandler leading Barr by 648 votes.

Official count shows Chandler defeating Barr by 649 votes

John Cheves — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 17:41:02 +0000

By John Cheves - jcheves@herald-leader.com U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles, leads Republican Andy Barr by 649 votes, according to official vote totals from all 16 counties in the 6th Congressional District. The last of the county totals, which have been certified by county clerks but have not yet been given the final stamp of approval by the Kentucky Board of Elections, were submitted to the secretary of state's office on Friday. The official count is Chandler with 119,812 votes and Barr with 119,163 votes, said Les Fugate, spokesman for the secretary of state. As county and state officials double-checked their math, there were slight adjustments to totals in Estill County, which Barr won, and Fayette and Franklin counties, which Chandler won. Chandler declared victory on Tuesday night, but Barr, a Lexington lawyer, has not conceded and requested a recanvass, a machine-by-machine check of the vote totals. The recanvass is scheduled for Nov. 12. Chandler gave a 45-second speech re-declaring victory at his campaign office in Lexington Friday. “Today the county boards of elections certified their vote totals and sent them to the secretary of state, reconfirming our victory and showing that the people of Central Kentucky have again chosen me to be their voice in Congress,” Chandler said. “Andy Barr fought hard, and I commend his willingness to serve the people of Central Kentucky.” Chandler did not take any questions directly from reporters, disappearing into a back office immediately after his statement.

Andy Barr seeks recanvass in tight race with Ben Chandler

Accountability Editor — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 20:22:16 +0000

By John Cheves - jcheves@herald-leader.com Republican Andy Barr asked on Thursday for a second check of vote totals across the 16 counties of Central Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District, where he trails U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles, by 619 votes out of more than 239,000 cast. Barr, a Lexington lawyer, sent a letter Thursday to Secretary of State Trey Grayson asking for a machine-by-machine examination of vote totals produced by county elections officials on Tuesday night. Chandler has claimed victory in the race, but Barr has not conceded defeat. The procedure, called a recanvass, will occur in the individual counties on Nov. 12 and should take only a few hours, said Les Fugate, spokesman for the secretary of state. The counties immediately will report their findings to the secretary of state. “Please take all steps necessary to preserve the integrity of the voting machines, as well as all ballots and election day materials as required,” Barr wrote to Grayson.

Video: Speeches in U.S. Senate, 6th Congressional District and Lexington mayor races

Accountability Editor — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 17:30:06 +0000

U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles Republican Andy Barr U.S. Senator-elect Rand Paul, R-Bowling Green Democrat Jack Conway Lexington Mayor-elect Jim Gray Outgoing Lexington Mayor Jim Newberry

Chandler expected to speak to supporters around 10:15 p.m.

Accountability Editor — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 02:06:35 +0000

U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles, is expected to address supporters at The Barrel House in Lexington’s Distillery District sometime around 10:15 p.m., his campaign announced. Chandler is locked in a tight race with Republican Andy Barr. With 98 percent of the vote counted, Chandler leads by less than a percentage point. - Amy Wilson

Campaign Watchdog: Was that attack ad true or false?

Accountability Editor — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 12:02:56 +0000

Since August, the Lexington Herald-Leader has checked the accuracy of more than two dozen claims made by candidates or their surrogates in Kentucky’s U.S. Senate race, the 6th Congressional District race and the Lexington mayor’s race. Here’s a recap of what we found. • 6th Congressional District: Ben Chandler vs. Andy Barr • U.S. Senate: Jack Conway vs. Rand Paul

• Lexington mayor: Jim Gray vs. Jim Newberry

Voters’ Guide: Where candidates stand on the issues

Accountability Editor — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 14:13:53 +0000

Election Day is Tuesday. It's time to pay attention and pick a candidate. To help, we've quizzed the candidates on the most important issues of the day. You'll find their answers of 45 words or less by clicking on the links below. U.S. Senate (PDF) 6th District U.S. House (PDF) Lexington mayor (PDF) State Senate (PDF) State House (PDF) Urban County Council (PDF) Urban Council Districts (PDF) On Tuesday, polls are open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time. Anyone in line by 6 p.m. may vote. To find out whether you are registered to vote, where you vote and which races you may vote in, visit the Voter Information Center at the State Board of Elections' Web site, Elect.ky.gov. The link below also contains a listing of candidates for every state office on the ballot in Kentucky. And if you live in Fayette, Bourbon, Clark, Madison, Jessamine, Woodford, Scott or Franklin County, you'll find a complete listing of candidates seeking local offices. On the ballot: a listing of candidates in state, federal and local races

Campaign Watchdog: Claim about Barr’s money from coal operators ‘true’

John Cheves — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 17:34:22 +0000

READ PREVIOUS CAMPAIGN WATCHDOG STORIES CORRECTION: An Oct. 27 "Campaign Watchdog" item was incomplete in its description of a report by the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration and its findings regarding International Coal Group and the 2006 Sago mine disaster in West Virginia. In its investigation, MSHA cited 149 violations of mandatory mine safety and health regulations at the mine. However, MSHA investigators found that none of those violations caused the accident or contributed to the deaths of 12 miners. The MSHA report concluded that a lightning strike caused the Sago mine explosion. The report cited additional "root causes" in the disaster — including a build-up of methane in a sealed portion of the mine and mine seals that were built to an MSHA standard that could not withstand the force of the explosion. The MSHA report did not state that the company was at fault in either case. By John Cheves - jcheves@herald-leader.com The statement: "Barr's campaign is funded by coal operators responsible for mine disasters." -- U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler, D-Versailles, in a television ad criticizing Andy Barr, his Republican challenger The ruling: True The facts: Barr's campaign has reported more than $31,000 in coal industry donations. About 40 percent of that money came from top executives at two companies -- International Coal Group of Scott Depot, W.Va., and Massey Energy of Richmond, Va. -- that have a history of fatal accidents and citations by government safety and health inspectors. To cite two prominent recent examples, ICG owns the Sago mine in West Virginia where 12 miners died in 2006 and Massey owns the Upper Big Branch mine, also in West Virginia, where 29 miners died in April.