music >> If you want to vote straight ticket, be my guest.

But you're only going to capture about a third of what your options are as a voter.

If you do that.

[MUSIC] >> Early voting starts this week.

What do you need to know before heading to the polls?

[MUSIC] The clerk of Kentucky's largest city responds to the Department of Justice's plan to send federal monitors to the city on Election Day.

[MUSIC] >> We have the momentum.

[APPLAUSE] >> Republicans make a final push in Lexington before Election Day.

[MUSIC] >> It is highly, highly contagious.

[MUSIC] >> And with measles cases on the rise, what you need to know to avoid becoming a patient.

[MUSIC] >> Production of Kentucky Edition is made possible in part by the KET Millennium Fund.

>> Good evening and welcome to Kentucky Edition for Monday, October 26th.

I'm Laura Rogers, thank you for joining us.

The 2026 general election is just over a week away.

While many will wait until next Tuesday to cast their ballots here in Kentucky, early voting begins this Thursday.

Our McKenzie Spink spoke with Secretary of State Michael Adams, the state's top election official, about what voters need to know before they head to the polls.

>> This will be the second election in Kentucky since the General Assembly passed House Bill 139, which changed the forms of identification.

Voters can use it.

The polls Secretary Michael Adams, reminds Kentuckians to bring an ID that has your photo on it.

>> We still have our photo ID to vote law.

You do need to bring your photo ID with you.

The vast majority of voters, some 99%, use a driver's license, will take student IDs.

We'll take a passport.

Just something that's government issued or or school issued and has your face on it to prove your identity.

Over time, the legislature has gotten rid of some of the exemptions.

And so credit cards are no longer permitted as as IDs, as well as Social Security cards.

Benefits cards, those sorts of things.

They have to have your picture on them.

So bring a driver's license.

And if you can't get an ID, if you don't have an ID, we will give you an ID, go to your county clerk's office and we can get you a state issued ID for voting purposes.

>> Adams says the best way to ensure a smooth voting process is to be informed before you show up.

>> A lot of people vote straight ticket, but you only catch a few of the things on the ballot if you do that, because most of the races are nonpartisan, we have judges on the ballot.

They're nonpartisan.

We have school boards on the ballot.

They're nonpartisan.

We have city races in many places.

Those are nonpartisan.

We have a constitutional amendment that you need to read before you vote in it.

That's nonpartisan as well.

So when you're voting, if you want to vote straight ticket, be my guest, but you're only going to capture about a third of what your options are as a voter.

If you do that.

>> The deadline to request an absentee ballot has passed.

But the Secretary of State's office is still accepting ballots returned by voters in order to be counted.

Absentee ballots need to be in by the time polls close on November 3rd.

>> Most of our absentee ballots are still outstanding.

More than half.

So I want to strongly encourage voters, get those ballots back to us.

You can mail them if you do.

So.

I would do it right now, or you can use the drop box.

We've given every county clerk a drop box.

So just go to the county clerk's office and you'll see the drop box.

You can drop it there.

>> This year, the U.S.

Department of Justice is sending election monitors to polling places in Fayette and Jefferson counties.

Secretary Adams says he suspects voters at those polls won't notice.

The monitors are there.

>> It's pretty common in most states in our state to.

They were just here two years ago.

They don't consult with me.

They don't ask my permission.

They don't ask where I think they should go.

It's really their baby.

So this time they picked Jefferson, Fayette and we'll work with them in good faith to the extent they work with us in good faith, they're not allowed to harass people.

They're not allowed to arrest people.

They're not allowed to challenge voters.

All they're allowed to do is dress in plain clothes and take notes.

>> For Kentucky edition.

I'm McKenzie Spink.

>> Sample ballots for every county can be found on the Secretary of State's website, sos.ky.gov.

Well, as McKenzie mentioned, the Department of Justice says it will send federal monitors to Louisville and Lexington on Election Day.

Jefferson County Clerk David Yates told reporters he welcomes the federal response if they play by the rules.

Yates says the DOJ alerted his.

And the Fayette County Clerk's office of its plans, including to accommodations for voters with disabilities and non-English speakers.

But he says the DOJ requested access inside the polling places, which goes against state law.

>> These are not law enforcement.

These are civil, volunteer civil monitors, and I can't see why a civil volunteer monitor would be willing to commit a felony in this situation.

I can't say it won't happen, but I can say that we have appropriate law enforcement here in case it does.

If that was really the the reason that they want to be here is to look at our accessibility and our language.

We welcome that.

And so we made that really clear.

But they have to do it in compliance with the law.

We can't allow someone to be in a polling location that's not explicitly authorized in there, just because Clark Yates says so.

There's a reason there's a laws put in place.

>> The Jefferson County Clerk's office sent a letter to the DOJ outlining state law.

Yates says the DOJ didn't respond or give a clear count of the number of civil volunteer observers that will be on site.

Outside groups are able to observe and even campaign outside polling places if they stay 100ft away.

This weekend, the Republican Party of Kentucky hosted a Super Saturday Get Out the Vote rally in Lexington before volunteers went door knocking.

Congressman Andy Barr, Doctor Ralph Alvarado and U.S.

Senator Rand Paul spoke to supporters about the importance of this midterm election.

Our Clayton Dalton was there and brings you this report.

>> The narrative all through this campaign has been that the Democrats have the momentum.

Look at this room.

We have the momentum.

[APPLAUSE] >> In a packed room at the Fayette County GOP headquarters, sixth district congressman and Republican Senate nominee Andy Barr characterized his opponent, Charles Booker, as a socialist.

>> Who wants to defund the police like a socialist.

If he wants to open our borders like a socialist, if he wants to pay people not to work like a socialist, guess what?

That's a socialist.

[APPLAUSE] >> Barr said he wants to earn the votes of common sense Democrats, and had a message to undecided voters.

>> So if you want costs to come down, don't vote for the party that's going to increase your taxes.

Don't vote for the party.

That's going to add more regulation that will increase the cost of groceries.

Don't vote for the other side that wants the Green New Deal.

That will skyrocket energy prices.

Work with us to lower energy prices through free enterprise.

>> The Republican running to fill Andy Barr's seat in Congress, Doctor Ralph Alvarado is in a close race with Democrat Zach Dembo.

The Cook Political Report recently moved the race from leans Republican to a toss up.

Barr has called that race a toss up, too, with Election Day closing in, Alvarado said he's grateful to have President Trump's support, even though he didn't attend his recent Northern Kentucky rally, citing campaign conflicts.

>> I'm appreciative of the of the president's endorsement.

We've had endorsements of a lot of people here in the state as well.

Almost all of our state senators, endorsements from the National Federation of Independent Businesses, state FOP, the Attorney general, it says something when you're a federal prosecutor and nobody in that realm is endorsing you, that says something about that individual.

So in the police officers, the attorney general, the people that work in that field say, I'm the better choice for law and order and for safety in our state.

That's astonishing.

And people should pay attention to that.

>> He also said he thinks the war in Iran has ran its course.

>> I think the concern about having a nuclear weapon imminent in the hands of the government of Iran should be concerning for all of us.

That was something that's a concern that comes up.

We need to take action.

I think the president took action swiftly.

We're now months into this conflict.

We've got to have some resolution.

I think people are ready to have this thing end.

And so we're prepared to have it end as well.

And I think it's run its course.

>> With in-person early voting starting in less than a week, Alvarado said he's also working to court undecided voters.

>> Yeah, we're asking them to come our way.

I think I've made a case in our debate the other night in terms of who's going to be an independent voice.

I've got a proven track record on that.

If I think something is good for Kentucky, I'll say so and I'll vote for it.

If I think something is bad for Kentucky, I'll say so, and I'll vote that way too.

>> For some, this midterm election is about more than keeping Kentucky red.

>> This is to save our country.

If we lose the Congress, if we lose the Senate, we will lose our country.

>> For Kentucky edition, I'm Clayton Dalton.

>> The GOP rally did draw a small group of protesters.

One of them told KET that he came out because he's unhappy with Republicans supporting the Trump administration.

[MUSIC] >> Our current leadership, which everyone says here that they are 100% Trump supporters, are just rubber stamps for whatever illegal activities, whether it be a war in Iran over nuclear projects that were obliterated three months ago, or whether it's the release of the Epstein files.

That's 330 days past when the court said that they should be released.

So we're here to demand that our leadership stand up and play some sort of guardrail to keep this administration from further destroying and stealing from our economy.

>> Join us this evening for Kentucky tonight as we talk to some candidates in the first and fifth congressional districts.

Send us your questions and comments.

That is tonight at 8:00 eastern, seven central here on KET.

Factually wrong.

Strategically naive and morally bankrupt.

That is how U.S.

Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky describes President Donald Trump's current policies toward Russia.

McConnell wrote a piece that appeared in yesterday's Wall Street Journal.

The president has eased sanctions with Russia in recent weeks, saying that will bring Russia back to the bargaining table in an effort to end the continuing war with Ukraine.

Senator McConnell also wrote this, quote, Trump's obsequious accommodation of Russia rewarding the aggressor with sanctions relief won't persuade Mr.

Putin to stop.

History shows that such behavior emboldens Russia's autocrat, who sees it as weakness, end quote.

And McConnell says Trump's threat to withhold security and intelligence assistance to Ukraine will help Russia and could prolong the war, not shorten it.

Fayette County Public Schools today launched a survey on its website to get input from the public as it searches for the district's next superintendent.

Last week, the interim superintendent, doctor Bill Bradford, spoke with KET about the turmoil the district has experienced over the past year, including State and internal audits brought on by a multimillion dollar budget deficit.

He told us encouraging community input and being transparent about the audit process are important steps to getting the district back on track.

>> Obviously, we receive the the audit report that we sanctioned ourselves.

Our school board authorized the budget processes and expenditures audit through Beaver, Tidwell.

We've already implemented and put into place a corrective action plan to address each of those findings, which again, would be viewable to anybody who would want to see our progress on a dashboard, on our website.

And then you're right, we are looking ahead to the next audit report that will be delivered to us, which is from the State Department.

And quite frankly, we intend to address that in a very similar fashion.

We believe that we have already been implementing improvement strategies and priorities related to the feedback that we'll receive.

But anything unaccounted for, we will extrapolate and we will identify those and tackle those in the same way that we have every other piece of information.

We have an entire year ahead.

You know, I've told everybody that this year is important to the entire organization because regardless of leadership, temporary or otherwise, this is still a legacy year for the system.

So family engagement is extremely important to all of us.

Certainly to me.

So I've invited families to be able to spend time with me, to engage in just core questions that I would like to get their input about so that we can continue to make continuous improvements.

What's working well, what is not working well, and what other hopes do you have for our districts in terms of what we could do next?

My aspiration, both right now and in the future, is for us to elevate from great.

Because we are it's an outstanding school district to world class.

And I think if we can get our families perspective, we'll learn a little bit more about what we could do.

>> Bradford said he is interested in becoming the next superintendent of Fayette County Public Schools.

Officials say they plan to name a new superintendent by March 15th, 2027, with a start date of July 1st.

[MUSIC] Measles cases in Kentucky are on the rise, according to the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, there have been more than 150 confirmed cases as of October 14th.

The cases have been mostly in Under-vaccinated communities across the state.

Ten people have been hospitalized this year.

>> It's caused by a virus.

It is highly, highly contagious.

It is airborne, spread through airborne methods.

It is in the air.

It can last in the.

In an isolated area.

Airborne for up to two hours.

And so a person who can be in a room leave who is infected, and then someone who is unvaccinated comes in.

There is a very great chance that they can contract measles at that point.

There's no treatment for measles per se, just supportive care.

But the best, the best method, the best treatment is being proactive.

That is being vaccinated with the with the MMR vaccine.

And usually it's two shots that are that will will make you fully vaccinated.

One shot provides up to about 93% protection, two shots up to 97% protection.

And it is lifelong protection.

I believe 1 to 3 out of 1000 people will either contract something like pneumonia or may even need to be hospitalized.

So it's really a low percentage, but still, you should contact your primary care provider for further guidance.

But the major thing is isolation.

It's about anywhere from 7 to 14 days before symptoms actually begin.

The the other part to that, however, though, is usually four days before symptoms begin.

A person is infectious and can actually spread it, and that lasts up to about four days after their after their symptoms begin.

And of course, usually begins like any like like most viral infections, that is usually high fever person will have a cough.

They have congestion.

And also conjunctivitis.

That usually occurs about 2 to 3 days after these symptoms begin, they can have what the, what we call something that's pathognomonic.

That is, it's specifically for measles.

If you look in the mouth, they have these white spots.

Known as koplik spots.

Those those present 2 to 3 days after symptoms begin and then anywhere from 3 to 5 days after symptoms begin.

That's when the actual rash from measles occurs.

People primarily at risk.

Again, those unvaccinated or people who see children under the age of five adults over the age of 20, pregnant persons and those who are immunocompromised, they are the ones that we really, really need to make sure are vaccinated.

>> According to the cabinet for Health and Family Services, there was a recent outbreak in Laurel County that started in August.

Those who got it were not vaccinated.

There have not been any reported cases linked to that outbreak as of early October.

[MUSIC] Horse racing fans are awaiting the start of the Breeders Cup World Championship, taking place at Keeneland this Friday and Saturday, but there's plenty of activities to keep them busy while they wait, courtesy of the week long Breeders Cup Festival.

Marvin Bartlett sat down with Matt Harris, the marketing director of the festival, to find out more.

>> I'm joined by Matt Harris, a member of the festival planning committee.

Matt, thanks for coming in.

>> Thanks for having me on, Marvin.

>> A lot of people may not realize what a big deal it is for Lexington to get the Breeders Cup.

Just talk about why this is so special.

>> It is.

Yeah.

The Breeders Cup has turned into a pretty marquee event on the racing calendar each year.

You know, it's kind of the pinnacle for all the people involved in racing.

It's sort of all star weekend for the playoffs, if you will.

And you know, it's really grown in popularity over the years.

And this will be the fourth rendition for Lexington and Keeneland to host it.

We've had some really memorable ones.

2015 we had American Pharoah kind of capping off a Triple Crown season with a classic win.

22 we had Flight Line, who's also considered one of the greatest horses ever.

And you know, those have been huge economic impacts for the city as well.

So you know, this year we're expecting it to be bigger and better than ever.

And, you know, it's a special thing to be able to welcome the world.

And, you know, there's going to be people visiting from from all corners of the of the world.

And we want to show them why we're the horse capital.

And, you know, showcase everything that Lexington has to offer.

And, and, you know, it's special for the local residents as well.

And so we want to provide something for, for them to participate in too.

>> Yeah.

Expecting something like 43,000 people a day out of Keeneland, which is twice as many people as they would have for a normal race.

So they've really had to make a lot of preparations out there.

But why is it important to have events away from the track?

>> Yeah, well, Keeneland is a bit of a smaller venue for this.

And you know, finally we've realized how special it can be.

But you know not everybody can get a ticket and make it out to the track.

You know it's been a highly sought after event.

And so, you know, we wanted to provide something for the local community to feel like they can engage with the, with the events of the week and sort of building momentum into the, the championship weekend.

We wanted to, to create some special events and activities for, for families, for college students, for adults alike.

So we have a lot of different stuff going on around town.

>> Yeah, we'll highlight a couple of those events for us.

>> Yeah.

So starting on Monday night here tonight, we have a special blues, purple and blues concert at the historic Lyric Theater.

Got a young female guitarist, blues guitarist coming in from Texas.

Allie Venables her name.

She's special, a prodigy of sorts.

She's only 27 but been doing it over a decade and TD young is going to be joining her.

You know, he's of course, a music legend in these parts.

Kentucky Music Hall of Famer.

And so leading into further down the week, we've got some other live music at Tandy Park downtown, fifth Third Pavilion, courthouse area.

Those similar with Thursday Night Live going to have a similar setup to that with some local artists and vendors and concessions and things kind of all afternoon and evening.

Thursday night is another special performance from, you know, what better way to kind of lean into the purple aspect than have a prince performance, a Prince cover band.

World renowned one.

I mean, hard to even say.

It's even a cover band.

The guy looks dead on him.

I mean, it's we're expecting a big crowd out there at the burrow.

And so all that's kind of building anticipation for the weekend.

And then we're having big watch parties at Gatton Park as well.

Where you can come bring a chair, blanket and take in the races from there.

If you don't have a ticket.

We got a huge 20 by 40 foot screen at the stage there, and we're going to have some live music and DJ in between races, a bunch of different food trucks and local breweries.

So we're expecting that to be a fun time.

>> So it's like any sport event, it's really special to be in a crowd and enjoy it with a lot of other people.

>> Yeah, absolutely.

And you know, if you're a downtown worker, come out Friday afternoon, you know, happy hour, there's a big concert at Rupp Arena that night, you know, maybe pregame there Friday.

And then, you know, the races start, you know, in the morning at noon, Friday and Saturday.

So we're going to be running every single one of them there.

And you know it's going to be great for the horse players and and anybody casually wanting to take in the races to, to come out and watch it.

>> Yeah.

Are you finding that downtown businesses, restaurants and hotels are also trying to get in on the action?

>> Yeah.

Of course, you know, this is a, the biggest month for a lot of different restaurants and hotels and businesses around town.

And, you know, Keeneland meet may be over.

You know, this past weekend, but you know, the races are going to continue.

And, you know, so we want to keep that momentum going.

And, you know, support them and showcase, you know what Lexington's so unique and special with all the, the people involved in that.

>> Yeah.

Well, the eyes of the horse racing world definitely will be on Lexington this week.

Where can folks get more information?

>> We do have a website, Breeders Cup, festival.com and you know, can't emphasize enough.

All of this is free.

Thanks to our great sponsors.

And so, you know, we want to make a fun, cost effective thing for, for families and people wanting to, to get involved.

So come out if you have a few hours in the evening or the weekends, it's going to be a special time.

>> All right.

Matt.

Harris, thanks for telling us about the Breeders Cup Festival.

>> People were skeptical when the first steamboat arrived in Louisville.

Our Toby Gibbs has that story and more.

And this look back at this week in Kentucky history.

>> 47 members of the Kentucky General Assembly met for the first time in Frankfort on November 1st, 1793.

[MUSIC] They met in a farmhouse owned by Major James Love.

[MUSIC] The first steamboat arrived in Louisville on October 28th, 18.

11.

People were glad to see the boat called the New Orleans, but they were skeptical it would be able to travel upstream.

But it did, prompting many people to invest in Robert Fulton's steamboat company.

Florence Riney, born in Louisville on October 30th, 1892, was appointed sheriff of Davis County after the death of her husband in 1936.

[MUSIC] It's believed she was the first female sheriff in America to preside over a hanging.

[MUSIC] Kentucky and Louisville met for the first time on the football field on October 26th, 1912, at Lexington's Stoll Field.

Kentucky won the game 41 to nothing.

[MUSIC] Center College beat Harvard in football six to nothing on October 29th, 1921.

[MUSIC] The New York Times has called it the greatest upset in college football history.

The Western Kentucky University based singing group the Hilltoppers appeared on Ed Sullivan's Toast of the town on CBS on October 26th, 1952.

[MUSIC] And that's a look back at this week in Kentucky history.

I'm Toby Gibbs.

>> It's the city that's synonymous with the national pastime.

>> When people think about baseball, they think about Louisville Slugger.

That name is just synonymous.

It is an American icon.

>> But what's the story behind the bat?

We'll head to the Louisville Slugger Museum as we go inside Louisville.

Tomorrow on Kentucky edition.

We'll stick around for Kentucky tonight in just about an hour.

We'll see you back here then.

At eight seven central, and then join us again tomorrow night at 630 eastern, 530 central for Kentucky Edition, where we inform, connect and inspire.

Subscribe to our Kentucky Edition Email newsletters.

[MUSIC] Watch full episodes and clips on our website at KET dot o r g. Email those story ideas to Public Affairs at ket.org and follow KET on Facebook.

[MUSIC] And Instagram.

Thank you for joining us.

Have a good night.