LEXINGTON, Ky. — Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate in Kentucky once again squared off in a debate Monday night, marking their third of the election season.

The four candidates who appeared in two previous debates solidified the pitches they’ve been making to viewers. But, this time, in the debate hosted by Louisville station WDRB and aired across Kentucky, a fifth candidate got to make his case directly to viewers.

Logan Forsythe, a Lexington attorney and former U.S. Secret Service agent, had not been included alongside candidates Rep. Pamela Stevenson, D-Louisville; Louisville horse trainer Dale Romans; and former candidates Amy McGrath and Charles Booker in previous debates. Throughout Monday night’s hourlong debate, Forsythe spoke at length about his background and his focus on working class Kentuckians.

“My life started in poverty in rural Western Kentucky. I have lived the average Kentucky experience both in the harshest conditions and now as a working class Kentuckian. We will not make it if we do more of the same. ... Kentucky deserves somebody who understands the struggles of actual Kentuckians and who will do what’s right by them to make your life better,” Forsythe said.

All the candidates are aiming to breathe life into a state Democratic Party beleaguered by losses at the federal level. Kentucky has had only one Democrat in Congress — representing the deep blue 3rd Congressional District in Louisville — since Rep. Andy Barr defeated former Central Kentucky congressman Ben Chandler in 2012. Democrats have not won a U.S. Senate seat since the late Wendell Ford’s reelection in 1992.

Booker, who has led in the few publicly released polls, continued his pitch as the candidate with the most concrete progressive proposals. On the opposite end of the spectrum was Romans, who offered the most stark criticism of other candidates — particularly Booker and McGrath, who lost by double digits in their 2020 and 2022 contests, respectively.

“If you’re not gonna vote for me, at least vote for Pam (Stevenson). We need to win this race. We have two candidates up here that are 0-4 in federal races, and gotten beat so far. If they were race horses, I would have retired them. We’ve got to win this race,” Romans said.

McGrath agreed with Romans in some of his comments, but did not present herself as a full-blown moderate in the way Romans has. A Marine Corps veteran, McGrath leaned heavily on her military service background in her responses about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Stevenson and Forsythe shared an emphasis on helping working class Kentuckians.

“Working families have been forgotten by Mitch McConnell for far too long, and when I speak with them, what they want is health care, housing, food, shelter. You know: the basics. When we focus on what they need, everybody thrives, and Kentucky is lifted,” Stevenson said.

The issues

The conflict in Iran — the U.S. and Israel began striking the country in late February — was a subject of derision among the candidates, who generally agreed it’s a waste of funds and harmful to the economy.

When asked by the moderators if they would consider the campaign a success “if it succeeds in taking away Iran’s nuclear capability,” all the candidates remained negative on the conflict.

“Now more than ever, we need a United States Senate that knows what the heck they’re doing on our national security. This has been, as it stands right now, the biggest strategic defeat for the United States of America in my lifetime, and it’s because it’s been bungled for the start. Anybody that’s done war games on Iran, like I have for the last two decades, knows that they would have closed the Strait of Hormuz,” McGrath said.

On immigration, each candidate was asked if they would opt to abolish or reform Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has been scrutinized for its policing practices under the Trump administration. Booker, Forsythe and Stevenson said the agency should be abolished, while McGrath and Romans opted for strong reforms.

“The criminals are not those who are seeking asylum. They’re in the White House, and what we need is an immigration system that is rooted in humanity, not cruelty. We need to abolish ICE, and we need justice and accountability for everyone who has been harmed by this rogue vigilante group,” Booker said.

All candidates except Romans were completely negative on McConnell’s legacy. In office for more than 40 years, McConnell made history as the longest-serving party leader in U.S. Senate history; he is often credited with reshaping the federal judiciary to be more favorable for conservatives and bringing home high-dollar projects to Kentucky.

Forsythe said McConnell was arguably one of the most powerful senators in American history, but he hasn’t benefited working Kentuckians.

“What does Kentucky have to show for having such a powerful senator? Again, we have the lowest minimum wage in the nation. Most people cannot find a job after college. Students from high school usually have to leave the small towns that they grew up in, which is causing small towns across Kentucky to wither away because there are not opportunities there. Mitch McConnell fought against making people’s lives better. He voted against raising the minimum wage or fought against it over two dozen times in my lifetime,” Forsythe said.

McGrath, Stevenson and Booker all struck a similar tone in their responses about McConnell. Romans had a different view.

“Nobody can look at Mitch McConnell’s career and say he didn’t do a lot for Kentucky and bring a lot of money into Kentucky. We’ve been the third-largest recipient of federal money since he started in leadership, and there’s no freshman that’s going to step into his role ... and be as powerful as he was,” Romans said, arguing that he could leverage power by being a Democrat elected from a “red” state like former West Virginia senator Joe Manchin.

Medicare for All, a hot topic in Democratic debates dating back several years, was also a subject of discussion. Romans took the most centrist stance, saying it “doesn’t work,” and that Canada’s system, which is single payer for hospital care, is not well-run.

Booker embraced the idea. So did Forsythe, though he added that a public option would be more realistic to achieve in the short term.

Stevenson endorsed the idea of a public option as well. McGrath said she would focus on “achievable results,” saying she would aim to undo recent cuts to Affordable Care Act subsidies.

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