State and national media chime in on Matt Bevin victory and its implications

Lexington, Ky.  – After Matt Bevin surprised Kentucky voters in the General Election to become the state’s next governor, it didn’t take long for local, regional and national media outlets to offer their analysis of the election and predictions the outcome could have on national politics.

Here are some recent headlines:

Herald-Leader: “Kentucky politics moves to a deep shade of red”

Herald-Leader political reporter Sam Youngman, who became a bit of a news item after being not-so-subtly snubbed by Matt Bevin at a recent press conference, offers his insights on the state of Kentucky politics through the prism of a “red dawn” in the Bluegrass State.

Courier-Journal: “5 takeaways from Matt Bevin’s win”

From another veteran Kentucky political reporter who recently drew the public ire of candidate Matt Bevin, Courier-Journal reporter Joe Gerth says it is uncertain whom the governor-elect will fill his cabinet with given his few ties with the state Republican party.

Washington Post: “Rand Paul doubling down on Senate, presidential bids after Ky. Elections”

The Washington Post puts the Kentucky election on the national stage, analyzing how the results will effect Senator Rand Paul’s political future. For starters, Kentucky State Auditor Adam Edelen, whose name was being circulated as a promising challenger to Paul in 2016, lost his statewide election.

Washington Post: “GOP win in Kentucky sets up unprecedented Affordable Care Act Fight”

On the campaign trail, candidate Matt Bevin made clear his disdain for the Affordable Care Act and Kentucky’s state insurance exchange, KYnect. Washington Post national political reporter David Weigel examines the disconnect between Kentucky’s rising rates of people with insurance, and their willingness to elect a candidate who wants to take it away.

FiveThirtyEight: “What to make of Kentucky’s Polling Failure”

All the polls leading up to the General Election showed a tight race between Bevin and challenger Jack Conway, but all gave a slight lead to Conway. In the end, Bevin won by significant numbers, and FiveThirtyEight, a premiere numbers-crunching site, looks at the polling mistakes.

U.S. News & World Report: “As goes Kentucky, so goes the nation?

Could Matt Bevin’s win be a bellwether for how the GOP might fare in the 2016 election? Bevin brandished his “outsider” status during the campaign, as do the two leading Republican candidates for president,  Donald Trump and Ben Carson.

The New Yorker: “Rand Paul no longer most embarrassing thing about Kentucky”

In a style reminiscent of The Onion, funnyman Andy Borowitz of The New Yorker reports that Rand Paul has been dethroned as the most embarrassing thing about Kentucky, referring to Tuesday’s election. However Borowitz doesn’t say who now holds the title: governor-elect Matt Bevin or Jack Conway, who has now lost statewide elections to Rand Paul and Bevin.