Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) tested his political influence outside of the Bluegrass State by offering his take on where Democrats are going wrong on messaging.
So far this fall, Beshear has launched a podcast, increased his national press appearances, and flown to London for trade talks between his state and the United Kingdom. Beshear, also the next chairman of the National Governors Association, told Democrats that their message of affordability, which was triumphant in the 2025 gubernatorial elections, is “not enough.”
“Democrats should be the party that will make it possible to build a better life — one in which you’re not just making ends meet but setting your family up for long-term success,” Beshear wrote in a Washington Post opinion piece on Monday.
From campaigning against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on Late Night with Seth Meyers to throwing his weight into national-level races by endorsing Gov. Janet Mills (D-ME) for Senate, Beshear has waded into the waters beyond Kentucky as speculation builds over whether he will run for president in 2028. This year, he has also made visits to New Hampshire and South Carolina, two early primary states.
Beshear, who has made kitchen-table matters his bread and butter since his first gubernatorial election in 2018, wrote his op-ed that for Democrats to win nationally, they need to focus on the effects the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will have on rural America.
“In Kentucky alone, Trump’s bill could translate into lost jobs for 20,000 health care workers. Rural economies — countless coffee shops, local banks, insurance agencies — will take a hit,” Beshear wrote. “All of that moves the American Dream even further out of reach. By focusing on reviving it, Democrats can win back voters who have been leaving the party in droves.”
He pointed to his track record of helping open a paper mill in an old coal mining town, a move that “resurrected the American Dream for 320 families.” Touting his electoral capabilities, he said the district turned from one he “narrowly won” in his first election to one he took by “double digits” in his next.
He also criticized his party for not “talking like normal human beings.”
“We’re not going to win the messaging battle if we say that Trump’s policies make people ‘food insecure,'” Beshear wrote. “No, they make people hungry. Kentucky was hit hard by the opioid epidemic. I didn’t lose friends and acquaintances to ‘substance use disorder’; I lost them to addiction. Addiction is hard, it’s mean, and it kills people. So when people triumph over it, we should give them the credit they deserve by calling it what it is.”
Beshear, who has not announced a run for president, has so far polled in the low single digits in possible 2028 matchups.
The centrist Democrat, who has won twice in a state that President Donald Trump took by more than 30 points, has not pinned himself as aggressively against the Trump administration as Govs. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) and JB Pritzker (D-IL) have.
With more wiggle room in a blue state, Newsom has taken a more aggressive stance against the Trump administration in court, in his rhetoric, and through social media campaigns, positioning himself as a top contender for the Democratic ticket in 2028.
WHY DEMOCRATS ARE OWNING THE AFFORDABILITY ARGUMENT
Beshear previously told Kentucky Sports Radio’s Matt Jones that he would “talk about” a 2028 presidential run with his family after the 2026 gubernatorial elections.
Beshear’s office did not respond to requests for comment from the Washington Examiner.
