Why Should I Care?


Kentucky's the Holy Grail of Senate races since the Republican leader in the Senate could lose his seat.

What Names Do I Need to Know?


Sen. Mitch McConnell (R, Incumbent): Senate Minority Leader—aka the Senate's top- ranking Republican. You should know this one. He’s been in the Senate for 30 years. If he goes, there will be a big shake-up in GOP leadership (think: Eric Cantor all over again).

Alison Lundergan Grimes (D): A local Kentucky politician who is backed by Dems like Bill Clinton. Bubba to his friends. As secretary of state, she's the only woman holding a constitutional office position in KY.

What Are the Issues?


Obama: McConnell is the guy who once said his number one priority is to make Obama a "one-term president." That didn't work out, but McConnell has slammed Grimes for being total Team Obama.

Social Issues: Well, she's a she. One point. Grimes is hitting McConnell where it hurts: the women's vote. She's using his voting record on things like equal pay and the Violence Against Women Act to try and make it ladies night in Kentucky on Nov. 4th.

Environment: Kentucky is a big coal-mining state—so a lot of people aren't loving Obama's plan to cut carbon emissions by 30% over the coming years. Grimes needs to put some distance between herself and Obama on this to keep the coal-mining vote in play.

Gimme Something to Say


Look at a picture of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R). Now get this: someone in Congress updated his Wikipedia page to read "his species is turtle."

I'm from Kentucky. What Do I Need to Know About Voting?


October 6th is your deadline to register to vote, if you're voting in person. Print this, fill it out, and mail it to your local clerk's office or DMV. Snail-mail. Deal with it.

October 28th is your deadline to request an absentee ballot if you're going to be out of state on Election Day. Get an absentee ballot by contacting your county clerk.

November 4th is Election Day. Get it done before Happy Hour—voting closes at 6 p.m. local time.

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