Ernie Fletcher - 2007 Gubernatorial Election

2007 Gubernatorial Election

In early 2005, Fletcher announced his intent to run for re-election. Shortly after Fletcher was indicted by the grand jury in 2006, Lieutenant Governor Pence announced that he would not be Fletcher's running mate during his re-election bid. Fletcher asked for Pence's immediate resignation as lieutenant governor. Pence declined, but did tender his resignation as head of the Justice Cabinet. Fletcher named his executive secretary, Robbie Rudolph, as his new running mate.

Although Fletcher's agreement with Stumbo to end the investigation was announced in late 2006, the scandal continued to plague his re-election bid, and he drew two challengers in the Republican primary – former Third District Congresswoman Anne Northup and multi-millionaire Paducah businessman Billy Harper. Senator Mitch McConnell, the consensus leader of the Kentucky Republican Party, declined to make an endorsement in the primary, but conceded that Northup was "a formidable opponent". Northup campaigned on the idea that Fletcher's involvement in the hiring scandal had made him "unelectable". Northup secured the endorsements of Jim Bunning, Kentucky's other Republican senator, and Lieutenant Governor Pence. In the primary, Fletcher garnered over 50% of the vote and secured the party's nomination. His rival Northup struggled with name recognition and found few areas of support outside the Louisville district she represented in Congress. She garnered 36.5% of the vote, with the remaining 13.4% going to Billy Harper. Democrats nominated former Lieutenant Governor Steve Beshear to challenge Fletcher.

In the midst of the primary campaign, the 2007 General Assembly convened. Among the accomplishments of the session were raising the state's minimum wage to $7.25 per hour, increasing the speed limit on major state highways to 70 mph (110 km/h), and implementing new safety requirements for social workers and coal miners. Additional legislation stalled after negotiations over how to make the state's retirement system solvent reached an impasse. Fletcher indicated that he would consider calling the Assembly into special session later in the year. In July, Fletcher called the session and included 67 items on its agenda. Democrats in the state House of Representatives maintained that none of the items were urgent enough to warrant a special session. They claimed the call was an attempt by Fletcher to boost his sagging poll numbers against Beshear, and the House adjourned after only 90 minutes without acting on any of Fletcher's agenda. Fletcher denied the claims and insisted that a tax incentive program was needed immediately to keep the state in the running for a proposed coal gasification plant to be built by Peabody Energy. After negotiating with legislators, Fletcher called another session for August; the session included only the tax incentive program, which the Assembly passed.

In the general election campaign, Fletcher attempted to make the expansion of casino gambling, rather than the merit system investigation, the central issue. Beshear favored holding a referendum on a constitutional amendment to allow expanded casino gambling in the state, while Fletcher maintained that expanded gambling would bring an increase in crime and societal ills. The gambling issue failed to gain as much traction as the hiring scandal, however, and Beshear defeated Fletcher by a vote of 619,686 to 435,895.

After the election, Fletcher founded Alton Heathcare, a consulting firm that helps healthcare providers make efficient use of technology in their practice. He has served as CEO of the company, which is based in Cincinnati, Ohio, since 2008.