As the Nov. 6 election fast approaches, an outside Republican group is dropping a six figure ad buy to help the GOP in state legislative races. The Republican State Leadership Committee is running television and radio ads in Louisville and western Kentucky and sending political mail to another 10 or so House races across the state.
The TV ads target state Sen. Perry Clark, a key target for the GOP and candidate Carroll Hubbard. You can view Hubbard's ad here. They are also running a radio ad against state Sen.Joey Pendleton.
The RSLC is also sending political mail to help GOP candidates that have been subject to the same treatment by a Democratic Super PAC, Kentucky Family Values, that has dropped half a million dollars into state legislative races.
RSLC spokesman Adam Temple says the group picked which races to give involved in based on their chances of helping the GOP win.
“It’s a combination of factors that go into that, but polling is definite one of them and we’ve picked races we think we have a good shot in,” he said.
Kentucky Republicans need to win 10 seats to take control of the state House, and they are also optimistic they can grow their majority in the state Senate. Currently, Republicans hold a 23-15 advantage, since the chamber's lone independent caucuses with the GOP.
Temple said another reason the RSLC is focusing on Kentucky the weekend before Election Day is to succeed in their effort to make the south a GOP stronghold.
“(Kentucky is) one of two southern states that are still in Democratic hands and we feel extremely optimistic about Arkansas, a little further away than Kentucky and very optimistic about Kentucky as well,” he said.
