Kentucky legislature passes bill cutting Democratic governor out of Senate vacancy process

The Kentucky Senate sent a bill to Gov. Andy Beshear‘s (D-KY) desk that would cut him out of the process of filling a vacancy in either of the commonwealth’s U.S. Senate seats. The upper chamber of the state legislature passed House Bill 622, which would remove the authority for the governor to appoint a replacement for a vacant U.S. Senate seat and instead keep the seat open until a special election can be held. The state Senate passed the law, 34-3, on Thursday after it passed the state House, 88-4,...