Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman addresses political future

GEORGETOWN, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) — There’s been a lot of speculation over who will become Kamala Harris’ running mate, as the spotlight continues on current Governor Andy Beshear being in the short list, the attention has also surrounded Lieutenant Governor Jacqueline Coleman, and what it could mean to her to become the state’s next leader.

“That’s a hypothetical at this point, because nothing’s been been decided. But my job is to be ready,” said Lt. Governor Coleman, during a stop in Scott County for a ground breaking for a food pantry.

Lt. Gov. Coleman has been governor Andy Beshear’s right hand since getting elected back in 2019.

“I’ve been side by side with him this entire time. I’ve watched him serve people who have just lost everything. I’ve watched him go to bat for vulnerable kids. I’ve watched him be, the kind of dad that all families would want and I always say he treats every Kentucky family like it’s his own,” she says.

And as the attention continues to surround Governor Beshear amid rumors he’s on Kamala Harris’ ‘short list’ of running mates, the attention also shifts to the leadership of Kentucky if that were to happen.

“One of the things I have learned most from, being Lieutenant Governor alongside Governor Beshear is the importance of civil discourse. Right? That’s what I taught as a, as a government teacher. But living it out and making sure that your actions match your words, those, those things are really important. And, and it’s a lot of the reason why we’ve seen people be able to come together in Kentucky, added Coleman.

For the Lieutenant Governor, it’s an honor to even be thought of as potentially the next governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

“I think all of the success you’re seeing across Kentucky. I think the notoriety our governor is receiving now is directly because of our investment in public education, our belief in it and the way it’s grown, our economy across Kentucky,” she said.

Adding that, the tour Beshear has been on wasn’t coincidental but rather something already in the making, but for a completely different reason.

“He originally started getting out, and visiting other states to help raise money. He started some PACS to support, middle of the road candidates just like us, all across the country because we want to help to take the temperature down, in our political discourse. And so that’s what he set out to do. And so it actually kind of ended up being the right timing, because he’s still traveling and doing work for that, while he’s in the running to be vice president,” she also says.

The lieutenant governor says the main focus is still showing up for the people of Kentucky, no matter what.