The race to fill Kentucky’s coveted U.S. Senate seat has taken on a new urgency and intrigue, as two high-profile Democratic candidates—each with deep backgrounds in national security and public service—have officially entered the fray. On Tuesday, September 16, 2025, Logan Forsythe, a former U.S. Secret Service agent and now a workers’ rights attorney, announced his bid for the Democratic nomination. Just a day later, on Wednesday, September 17, Joel Willett, a military veteran and former CIA officer, launched his own campaign, citing personal experience with political retaliation as a driving force behind his decision.
Both men join a growing field of contenders hoping to replace longtime Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, who earlier this year declared he would not seek reelection in 2026. The seat, long considered a Republican stronghold, has not been held by a Democrat since Wendell Ford’s victory in 1992—a fact that looms large over this year’s contest and shapes the strategies of every candidate.
Forsythe’s story, as reported by the Kentucky Lantern, is one of resilience and transformation. At just 36, he has worn many hats: Secret Service agent, attorney, and, perhaps most notably, survivor. His federal career came to an abrupt halt after a devastating car accident left him with broken neck and back—injuries that “nearly killed me,” as Forsythe put it in his campaign launch video. Forced to retire from federal service, he redirected his energy toward advocating for workers, especially in rural Kentucky.
Growing up in Lyon County, Forsythe experienced poverty firsthand. He was the youngest of four children raised by a single mother, and government programs like Medicaid and food stamps were essential to their survival. “I want to dispel this notion that people who rely on these programs and who need them, they’re only in their situation because of their lack of effort,” Forsythe told the Kentucky Lantern. “Because I don’t know what else my mother could have done growing up that she wasn’t already doing. If anything, it was too much effort for what she was getting out of it.”
This personal history shapes Forsythe’s policy platform. He is sharply critical of the GOP’s recent One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which he says slashes funding for veterans services, food assistance, and Medicaid. He argues that these cuts create a crisis for families across Kentucky, particularly in rural communities. If elected, Forsythe promises to champion legislation aimed at making living costs more affordable, expanding healthcare access, and bolstering public education.
Forsythe also insists that, despite his time working outside the state, he remains deeply connected to Kentucky’s rural heartland. “I am still from Lyon County,” he said. “I have family out there, and if I ignore them, they will call me. So, I can’t just ignore them or not go to family reunions. I’m going to be out there anyway, regardless of this campaign.”
Joel Willett, meanwhile, brings a different but equally compelling set of experiences to the race. According to the Associated Press, Willett’s campaign was galvanized by a very public and personal clash with the Trump administration. After serving in the Kentucky Army National Guard and the Army’s Military Police Corps, Willett joined the CIA, where he spent time in the White House situation room under President Barack Obama. His subsequent move into the private sector saw him leading companies in consumer electronics and engineering services, including work supporting the U.S. Navy.
But it was the revocation of his security clearance—an action Willett says was politically motivated—that pushed him to run for office. “I’ve seen firsthand how the Trump administration and their far-right allies are trying to weaponize the government against anyone who disagrees with them,” Willett said in his campaign announcement. “That just made me more determined to run.”
Willett was among 37 current and former national security officials who lost their clearances after signing a 2019 letter critical of then-President Trump, a move recently spotlighted by Trump ally Laura Loomer. The official memo from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard accused those affected of “politicization or weaponization of intelligence” and other unspecified misconduct, but offered no concrete evidence. Willett says his clearance was revoked just two weeks after his name appeared in an article about possible Senate candidates from Kentucky. The fallout was swift and severe: he received online attacks, including death threats.
Refusing to be intimidated, Willett has made the defense of democracy and the fight against political retaliation central themes of his campaign. “Right now, we live in a country where a president and his director of national intelligence think they can use all their power and all their trolls online to shut people up who disagree with them,” Willett said in a campaign video. “Well, I didn’t shut up.”
Like Forsythe, Willett is running on a populist platform. He has denounced tax cuts for the wealthy and Medicaid reductions, warning that such policies will strip millions of Americans of their health insurance. In his campaign video, Willett lamented the “ugly and violent” climate of current American politics, saying, “That goes against everything America stands for. I’ve dedicated most of my life to protecting the country—and the democracy—I love, and I’m not stopping now.”
The two men are not alone in their quest for the Democratic nomination. State lawmaker Pamela Stevenson, who was the party’s nominee for attorney general in 2023, has also declared her candidacy. On the Republican side, the primary has been fiercely contested by U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, former Attorney General Daniel Cameron, and businessman Nate Morris. Their campaigns have been marked by efforts to curry favor with former President Trump, who remains deeply popular in Kentucky, having carried the state in the last three presidential elections.
While the Republican candidates have focused on their ties to Trump and conservative values, the Democrats are betting that a message of economic fairness, healthcare access, and government accountability can resonate with voters weary of partisan gridlock and political scandal. Forsythe, for example, believes his rural roots and personal story make him uniquely positioned to bridge the gap between urban and rural Kentucky—a divide that has often hampered Democratic prospects in the state.
Willett, on the other hand, is framing his campaign as a battle for the soul of American democracy, casting himself as a defender of truth and integrity in an era of political retribution. Both men are keenly aware of the uphill battle they face: not only has Kentucky not elected a Democrat to the Senate in over three decades, but the state’s political landscape has shifted sharply to the right in recent years.
Yet, with McConnell’s retirement, the field is wide open—and the stakes are enormous. As the campaign heats up, Kentuckians will have no shortage of choices, each promising a different vision for the future. Whether voters are swayed by Forsythe’s story of perseverance and working-class advocacy or Willett’s stand against political retaliation remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: the 2026 Senate race in Kentucky will be one for the history books.
