WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- Republicans in Kentucky's 6th Congressional District have nominated state Sen. Alice Forgy Kerr to run for seat vacated by Gov. Ernie Fletcher.
Kerr, sister of 1995 Republican gubernatorial nominee Larry Forgy, won the nomination on the second ballot.
Now in her second term, Kerr has the backing of Sen. GOP Whip Mitch McConnell, who has worked aggressively to build the state GOP since winning his own Congressional seat in 1984.
The special election, made necessary by Fletcher's election last month as governor, will be held Feb. 17. Democrats are expected to nominate former Kentucky Attorney General Ben Chandler, who lost the race for governor, as their candidate.
The district, located around Lexington. Ky., is mostly white and urban. Fletcher won re-election to the seat in 2002 with 72 percent of the more than 150,000 votes cast. George W. Bush carried 55 percent of the district's vote in the 2000 presidential election, defeating former Vice President Al Gore by close to 35,000 votes.
