Is Frankfort, Kentucky a Liberal City?

Politics are becoming more and more important these days to a lot of different people, and a lot of people want to know if the place they live has people who share their beliefs. Does Frankfort, Kentucky lean liberal or conservative?

Frankfort, Kentucky is slightly conservative. Although the state of Kentucky is strongly conservative, residents of Frankfort lean conservative. Frankfort’s county, Franklin County, leans conservative; in the 2020 election, 49.5% of residents voted Republican and 48.5% voted Democrat.

The politics of a city are complicated, especially in Frankfort. The elections, policies, and demographics all play a role in determining whether a city is liberal or conservative.

Presidential Elections in Frankfort, Kentucky

Unlike Frankfort, the state of Kentucky is very conservativeOpens in a new tab.. The state has voted for the Republican candidate since the year 2000. Since 1956, the state has supported the Republican candidate most of the time, voting Democratic 4 times in the 17 elections.

The percentage of voters who voted for the Republican candidate in Kentucky has been between 55% and 65% since 2000. The lowest percentage was 56.5% in 2000 and the highest percentage was 62.5% in 2016.

In the 2020 election, 62.1% of Kentucky residents voted for the Republican candidate, while only 36.2% voted for the Democratic candidate. Kentucky has 120 countiesOpens in a new tab., and all but two of them voted mostly Republican.

The percentage of voters who chose to vote for the Republican candidate was between 60% and 90% in almost all of the counties. The percentage of voters who voted for the Democratic candidate rarely rose above 40%, resting mostly in the 25% range.

Kentucky is a solidly conservative state, but Franklin County is not necessarily the same way. Franklin County tends to lean conservativeOpens in a new tab.; the Republican candidate won in the county in 2 out of the last 6 presidential elections.

However, the percentages are very close. Between 2000 and 2020, the largest difference between the percentage of voters who voted for the Republican or Democratic candidate was 4.61% in 2016.

In the 2020 election, the percentage of people who voted for the Republican candidate was 49.5% and the percentage who voted for the Democratic candidate was 48.5%, a difference of only 1%. Franklin County leans conservative, but cannot always be counted on the vote conservative like most of Kentucky.

Frankfort, Kentucky is also on the verge of being an evenly divided town. However, it leans conservativeOpens in a new tab.. The Republican party has won out in the city 4 out of the 6 times between 2000 and 2020, but the percentages of Republican and Democratic voters have been within 10%.

There were 2,042 contributions to the Democratic party between 2018 and 2021, totaling $547,233. There were 838 contributions to the Republican party, adding up to $1,088,183. There was more money donated to the Republican party, but fewer people donated the money.

Local Leaders in Frankfort, Kentucky

The local leaders of the city represent the political leanings of that city. Though many consider themselves nonpartisan, the policies and ideals they support can have a lot to do with whether they are largely conservative or liberal.

Mayor

The mayor of Frankfort, Kentucky is Layne WilkersonOpens in a new tab.. He was elected in 2020 and will serve until 2024.

Wilkerson has not held an office before, but has a background as a financial advisor and business owner, even working for some Fortune 500 companies in Louisville and Chicago.

Wilkerson is considered nonpartisan, but his background in finance may suggest pro-business leanings. His campaign platformOpens in a new tab. when he ran for mayor involved a lot of economic plans for the city. This focus may mean he has conservative leanings.

City Commissioners

There are five seats on the Board of CommissionersOpens in a new tab., including the seat that the mayor holds. The four remaining seats are filled by three women and one man. The Board of Commissioners has the responsibility of approving and adopting the city budget, levying taxes, and creating or changing the laws, policies, and ordinances of the city. The Commissioners serve for two years (except for the mayor who serves for four years).

In the 2018 to 2019 Policy AgendaOpens in a new tab. for the Board of Commissioners, the following things were focused on, which may hint at what the political opinions of the people on the board are.

  • Pensions of city employees
  • Education and workforce training
  • Beautifying the city
  • Assessing and reporting on city hall and a fire station
  • Less reliance on state government
  • Developing a lobbying strategy for the budget
  • Online resources
  • Infrastructure
  • Improving and increasing partnerships with private companies
  • Planning for the sewer system
  • Diversifying the economy

City Manager

The city managerOpens in a new tab. is in charge of overseeing the operations of the city, implementing the budget, carrying out policies, and hiring government employees. The city manager of Frankfort is Laura Hagg.

Though the city manager is not an elected official, the Board of Commissioners does appoint them, which can show the political affiliations of the Commissioners and the city manager, which can give an idea of the way that the city leans. City Manager Laura Hagg is nonpartisan.

Policies in Frankfort, Kentucky

There are many policies that are associated with the liberal or conservative perspectives, such as abortion, gun control laws, and gay marriage. The support of these policies in certain areas can show whether an area is liberal or conservative.

Abortion

Abortion lawsOpens in a new tab. in Kentucky, and therefore Frankfort, are very strict and display a conservative point of view. Insurance policies, public funding, and health plans will only cover the cost of an abortion if the life of the mother or child is in danger or there was rape or incest involved.

The patient can only get an abortion after undergoing an ultrasound and having the image shown and described to them. The patient must receive state-directed counseling before receiving an abortion, the focus of which is on discouraging the patient from getting an abortion. The abortion must be performed before 20 weeks. However, this may change because of the United States Supreme Court decision about Roe v Wade.

As of 2017, there were three facilities in Kentucky that provide abortions, and only one of them is a clinic. This is a 50% decline from 2014. 99% of Kentucky counties did not have a clinic that provided abortions, leaving 82% of women with no access to abortions.

Gun Laws

Gun lawsOpens in a new tab. in Kentucky are quite lenient. Any person 21 years or older is able to purchase a firearm and carry it concealed in public without a permit or background check. Kentucky had the 13th highest gun death rate in the country in 2020.

Though Kentucky has child access prevention laws, it lacks universal background checks, licensing, domestic violence gun laws, assault weapon restrictions, a large-capacity magazine ban, waiting periods, concealed or open carry permits or regulations, and community violence intervention funding.

Gay Marriage

Kentucky legalized same-sex marriageOpens in a new tab. on June 26, 2015. This was the date when all states were required by the Supreme Court to legalize same-sex marriage.

Demographics

The populationOpens in a new tab. of Frankfort, Kentucky is around 27,715 people. The population density is 1,877 people per square mile. The percentage of female residents is 52.3%, and the percentage of male residents is 47.7%. The median age is 37.2. The average number of people per household is 2.1.

The racial makeupOpens in a new tab. of Frankfort, Kentucky is as follows:

  • White: 74.0%
  • Black: 15.7%
  • Hispanic/Latino: 4.5%
  • Asian: 2.1%
  • Native American: 0.3%
  • Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.0%
  • Two or More Races: 3.2%
  • Other: 0.2%

40.8% of the population are marriedOpens in a new tab., and 18.8% are divorced. 23.2% are married with children and 24.7% are single with children.

The average incomeOpens in a new tab. in Frankfort is $24,059 per year. The average household income is $40,622 per year. The unemployment rate is 5.3%.

85.8% of Frankfort residents are high school graduatesOpens in a new tab., and 22.7% are high school graduates only. 28.7% have four-year college degrees.

57.5% of Frankfort residents are religiousOpens in a new tab.. 30.3% of these are Baptist, 3.9% are Catholic, and 5.8% are Methodist. 0.0% follow Judaism, 0.0% follow an eastern faith, and 0.2% affiliate with Islam.

The conservative nature of Frankfort probably has to do with the high percentage of religious residents. Religious Americans are more likely to have conservative mindsets.

The Political History of Frankfort, Kentucky

FrankfortOpens in a new tab. was founded in 1786 and has been the capital of Kentucky since 1792. Frankfort was a trading center for tobacco, corn, and horses. It also has a lot of manufacturing. It was occupied in 1862 by Confederate general Braxton Bragg.

KentuckyOpens in a new tab. has been largely Republican since 1956 but has voted Democratic when a southern governor ran. The state voted for Jimmy Carter in 1976, and Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996. Before 1956, Kentucky had been voting mostly Democratic since 1856. Since the state was founded in 1792, it voted mostly Democratic-Republican until 1824, then people voted mostly for the Whig party until 1856.

When it comes to voting, the residents of Frankfort, Kentucky have leaned conservative, but voting results for both the Republican and Democrat parties have been quite close. Whether or not this will change in the future is yet to be seen, but you will likely be able to find people with the same political opinions if you move to Frankfort, no matter what your political affiliations are.

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Ashley Wadas

A little bit about me: I'm Ashley, I studied English in college which meant writing a lot! I wouldn't say writing is my favorite thing to do, but I do like writing about places I've lived. I enjoy reading and word puzzles. :)

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