After a highly contested race, Andy Beshear (D) declared victory and celebrated as Kentucky's next governor. However, the Associated Press has not yet called the race and neither has incumbent republican Matt Bevin who said he would not concede just yet.
Beshear gave his victory speech, celebrating with his running mate Jacqueline Coleman, supporters, family and friends.
"I haven't had an opportunity yet to speak to Governor Bevin, but my expectation is that he will honor the election that was held tonight, that he will help us make the transition. And I tell you what, we will be ready for that first day in office, and I look forward to it...Let's all wish this governor and his family the very best."
With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Beshear has a lead of 4,658 votes out of more than 1.4 million counted, or a margin of 0.3 percentage points.
There is no mandatory recount law in Kentucky. Bevin may request counties recanvass their results, which is not a recount, but rather a check of the vote count to ensure the results were added correctly. To do so, Bevin would need to seek and win a court's approval for a recount, the process for which would be dictated by the court.
"Would it be a Benin race if it wasn't a squeaker?...We are not conceding this race by any stretch," said Bevin. "We want the process to be followed and there is a process. We know for a fact that there are more than a few irregularities. They are very well corroborate and that's alright. What they are, exactly how many, which ones and what effect, if any, they have will be determined according to law that's well established."
Ryan Quarles took an early win for his second term as the Commissioner of Agriculture and Daniel Cameron was elected as the state's first African American Attorney General.
The State Treasurer went to incumbent Republican Allison Ball. Republican Michael Adams was been elected Kentucky's next Secretary of State, beating out Democratic candidate Heather French Henry.
Mike Harmon was named as the state auditor.
Get all election results from our sister station WLEX18 in Lexington here: Election Results.
Officials with President Trump's office released the following statement saying he "dragged" Bevin to the finish line.
"President Trump’s rally helped five of six Kentucky Republicans win clear statewide victories, including Attorney General-elect Daniel Cameron, who will be the first black A.G. in Kentucky history and the first Republican to hold the office since 1948. The President just about dragged Gov. Matt Bevin across the finish line, helping him run stronger than expected in what turned into a very close race at the end. A final outcome remains to be seen.”
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
