KY Primary: At age 86, U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers wins GOP primary and 23rd House term

John Cheves
·2 min read
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U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, won his 23rd term in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, according to Decision Desk HQ.

The 86-year-old Rogers easily defeated three challengers in the Republican primary: Dana Edwards of Manchester, David E. Kraftchak Jr. of London and Brandon Monhollen of London.

No Democrat filed to run against Rogers in the general election on Nov. 5.

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Since 1981, Rogers has represented Kentucky’s 5th Congressional District, covering much of the eastern and southeastern portions of the state, including the cities of Morehead, Pikeville, Hazard and London.

Over the past decade, Rogers has won his elections with more than 75 percent of the vote, and sometimes with more than 90 percent.

Congressman Hal Rogers casts his ballot on Tuesday near his home in Somerset.
Congressman Hal Rogers casts his ballot on Tuesday near his home in Somerset.

Despite the hundreds of millions of federal dollars he has funneled back to the area using his clout on the House Appropriations Committee, which he once chaired, his district long has been one of the nation’s poorest. U.S. Census data shows that one in every four of his constituents lives in poverty, about twice the national poverty rate.

Rogers told the Herald-Leader on Tuesday, as he cast his ballot in Somerset, that more work needs to be done for his district and the country. His constituents struggle with drug abuse, poor health and a lack of good jobs, he said.

“We’ve got problems. The country needs some direction,” Rogers said.

Rogers will enter the 119th Congress in January as the longest-serving active House member — which is why he’s nicknamed the “Dean” of the House — and one of the longest-serving members of Congress in the nation’s history, with fewer than three dozen other lawmakers who could boast of lengthier tenures.

Staff writer Bill Estep contributed to this report.