CNN projects Republican Matt Bevin, a tea party favorite, wins the Kentucky governor's race.



Election Day, 2015: Bevin wins in Kentucky


By Gregory Krieg, CNN
Updated 8:19 PM ET, Tue November 3, 2015

(CNN)Matt Bevin, the controversial Kentuckian who attempted to dethrone Mitch McConnell last year, orchestrated a remarkable political comeback on Tuesday and CNN projects he will win the state's governorship.

Bevin bested Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway, a Democrat, in the contest.

Bevin, a Republican often at odds with more mainstream elements of his party, managed to solidly beat Conway in a race that Bevin was not expected to win by any significant margin.

The results for other Election Day contests are not yet clear.

Bevin's victory is expected to cap a light day of off-year elections that feature quirky statewide ballot initiatives, contested mayor's races and one other governor's race in Mississippi where incumbent Republican Gov. Phil Bryant looks set to win another term. The contest has been pushed to the background, however, by a clash over a constitutional amendment that would allow voters to sue the state to boost funding for public schools.

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In Virginia, Democrats are seeking to capture the state Senate, which Republicans now hold narrowly. And there are notable elections for mayor in Philadelphia, Houston and Salt Lake City.

Meanwhile, heated debate surrounding an effort to defeat a LGBT rights law in Texas could become hot fodder for the presidential candidates, a billionaire is backing a major effort to protect Big Game, and voters in Seattle are weighing a unique answer to the problem of money in politics.

 http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/03/politi...dum/index.html