Madon scores 11-day historic victory in Senate campaign

It only took 11 days, but the election of Pineville Mayor Scott Madon for Senate District 29 in Eastern Kentucky was a resounding success.

According to figures finalized late Wednesday, Madon won the district — which also includes Bell, Knott, Harlan, Letcher and Floyd counties — in a landslide.

The tight campaign timeline came after the death of Sen. Johnnie Turner of Harlan, who died in late October due to complications from a lawn mower accident.

Turner’s death and the withdrawal of the only other candidate on the ballot, independent David Suhr, led to the rare situation that occurred. The only eligible voters were write-in candidates who had to file their paperwork just days after Turner’s death. All in all, 11 different people submitted applications.

Madon won 35 percent of the electorate with 35.2%. Second best was Floyd County’s Willie Crase, who recorded 15%, followed by Letcher County’s Tyler Ward and Independet candidate Tanner Hesterberg.

Justin Noble, the candidate who received the support of Democratic figures such as Gov. Andy Beshear and former Democratic leader of the House of Representatives Rocky Adkins, came in fifth with about 10% of the vote.

The write-in votes had to be visually counted by local election officials, requiring voters to both fill in a square designated for a write-in vote and spell out the last name of their preferred candidate.

Pineville’s mayor reaped some early benefits. He had the support of the deep-pocketed Republican Campaign Caucus Committee in the Senate; Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester; and former Fifth Congressional District Rep. Hal Rogers, R-KY.

While the results in Floyd, Knott and Letcher were among a handful of candidates, Madon ran away with huge margins in his native Bell County, as well as neighboring Harlan. He received more than 2,500 votes in those counties: 79% of Bell and 61% of Harlan.

Madon also received support from Turner’s surviving family for his competition, stating that their support “was incredibly moving despite their time of immense grief and mourning.”

“Having the support and blessing of the family of the late Senator Johnnie L. Turner meant the world to me, and it was incredibly moving and deeply emotional to have their support and encouragement despite their time of tremendous grief and mourning. I will do my utmost to continue Senator Turner’s legacy in Eastern Kentucky,” Madon wrote in a statement.

Madon has identified infrastructure — road projects are vital to the region, where long and winding valleys dominate the landscape — and energy as key policy priorities for his first term in Frankfort.

“I will wake up every day with the Mountain People on my mind and the desire to work hard for you in Frankfort to make our home an even better place to live, work and raise a family,” Madon said.