Kentucky's 31st Senate district

Kentucky's 31st State Senate district
Senator	Phillip Wheeler R–Pikeville since March 19, 2019
Registration	49.9% Republican 43.3% Democratic 6.5% No party preference
Demographics	95.2% White 1.3% Black 1.1% Hispanic 0.6% Asian 0.1% Native American 1.7% Multiracial
Population (2022)	115,731
Registered voters (June 2024)	86,880

Kentucky's 31st Senatorial district is one of 38 districts in the Kentucky Senate. Located in the eastern part of the state, it comprises the counties of Elliott, Johnson, Lawrence, Martin, and Pike. It has been represented by Phillip Wheeler (R–Pikeville) since 2019.[1] As of 2022, the district had a population of 115,731.[2]

Voter registration

On July 1, 2024, the district had 86,880 registered voters, who were registered with the following parties.

Party		Registration
		Voters	%
	Republican	43,320	49.86
	Democratic	37,621	43.30
	Independent	2,565	2.95
	Libertarian	212	0.24
	Green	25	0.03
	Constitution	19	0.02
	Socialist Workers	11	0.01
	Reform	5	0.01
	"Other"	3,102	3.57
Total		86,880	100.00
Source: Kentucky State Board of Elections

Election results from statewide races

2014 – 2020

Year	Office	Results[a]
2014	Senator	McConnell 61.3 - 35.5%
2015	Governor	Bevin 56.3 - 40.6%
	Secretary of State	Knipper 51.6 - 48.4%
	Attorney General	Beshear 50.02 - 49.98%
	Auditor of Public Accounts	Harmon 53.6 - 46.4%
	State Treasurer	Ball 57.6 - 42.4%
	Commissioner of Agriculture	Quarles 59.1 - 40.9%
2016	President	Trump 79.7 - 17.6%
	Senator	Paul 60.8 - 39.2%
2019	Governor	Bevin 55.1 - 42.4%
	Secretary of State	Adams 60.3 - 39.7%
	Attorney General	Cameron 59.6 - 40.4%
	Auditor of Public Accounts	Harmon 61.9 - 35.5%
	State Treasurer	Ball 66.3 - 33.7%
	Commissioner of Agriculture	Quarles 62.2 - 35.1%
2020	President	Trump 80.2 - 18.7%
	Senator	McConnell 73.3 - 23.0%
	Amendment 1	50.7 - 49.3%
	Amendment 2	69.9 - 30.1%

2022 – present

Year	Office	Results[a]
2022	Senator	Paul 76.4 - 23.6%
	Amendment 1	51.8 - 48.2%
	Amendment 2	63.9 - 36.1%
2023	Governor	Cameron 58.0 - 42.0%
	Secretary of State	Adams 71.9 - 28.1%
	Attorney General	Coleman 71.3 - 28.7%
	Auditor of Public Accounts	Ball 73.2 - 26.8%
	State Treasurer	Metcalf 69.0 - 31.0%
	Commissioner of Agriculture	Shell 72.6 - 27.4%
2024	President	Trump 83.4 - 15.5%
	Amendment 1	64.8 - 35.2%
	Amendment 2	68.2 - 31.8%

List of members representing the district

Member	Party	Years	Electoral history	District location
Kelsey Friend Sr. (Pikeville)	Democratic	January 1, 1972 – January 1, 1980	Elected in 1971. Reelected in 1975. Lost renomination.	1972–1974
				1974–1984
John Doug Hays (Pikeville)	Democratic	January 1, 1980 – January 1, 1984	Elected in 1979. Lost renomination.
Kelsey Friend Sr. (Pikeville)	Democratic	January 1, 1984 – January 1, 1997	Elected in 1983. Reelected in 1988. Reelected in 1992. Lost renomination.	1984–1993 Letcher (part), Martin (part), and Pike Counties.
				1993–1997
Gary C. Johnson (Pikeville)	Democratic	January 1, 1997 – January 1, 2001	Elected in 1996. Retired.	1997–2003
Ray Jones II (Pikeville)	Democratic	January 1, 2001 – January 7, 2019	Elected in 2000. Reelected in 2004. Reelected in 2008. Reelected in 2012. Reelected in 2016. Resigned after being elected Judge/Executive of Pike County.
				2003–2015
				2015–2023
Phillip Wheeler (Pikeville)	Republican	March 28, 2019 – present	Elected to finish Jones's term. Reelected in 2020. Reelected in 2024.
				2023–present

Elections

2024

Main article: 2024 Kentucky Senate election

2020

Main article: 2020 Kentucky Senate election

2019 special

Main article: 2020 Kentucky Senate election § District 31 special

2016

Main article: 2016 Kentucky Senate election

2004

Main article: 2004 Kentucky Senate election

1996

Main article: 1996 Kentucky Senate election

Notes

1. Figures presented in this table are calculated by summing precinct election results published by the Kentucky State Board of Elections, using precinct data that list each precinct's senatorial district.

References

1. "Legislator-Profile - Legislative Research Commission". legislature.ky.gov. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
2. "Census profile: State Senate District 31, KY". Census Reporter. Retrieved June 23, 2024.