Amy McGrath wins Democratic primary, will challenge Mitch McConnell for Kentucky Senate seat

(Image credit: Jason Davis/Getty Images)

Kentucky's Democratic Senate primary finally has a winner.

A week after voters went to the polls, CNN and The Associated Press are projecting that retired Marine fighter pilot Amy McGrath will win a tight race against state Rep. Charles Booker. She'll challenge Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as he seeks a seventh term in office this fall.

McGrath at first appeared to be the easy favorite to win the primary, getting support from establishment Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). Booker meanwhile ran to the left of McGrath, earning endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and other progressive leaders. His candidacy rocketed even further as protests and conversations surrounding systemic racism and police brutality rose across the U.S.

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Booker and McGrath's contest was too close to call until Tuesday morning, largely due to a sea of absentee ballots that had to be counted amid the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Tuesday morning, McGrath had just a bit more than a 10,000-vote lead over Booker, with more than 528,000 votes cast. McGrath is still considered a long shot when it comes to beating McConnell this fall, though she has been outraising the incumbent.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.