The Latest: Adams elected Kentucky secretary of state

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The Latest on general election results in Kentucky races on Tuesday (all times local):

9 p.m.

Republican attorney and former elections board member Michael Adams has been elected as Kentucky’s next secretary of state.

Adams played up his conservative connections and expertise in election law to overcome the more well-known candidate, former Miss America Heather French Henry. Although Henry ran on the Democratic ticket, she called herself a nonpartisan candidate.

Adams called himself the only conservative and took a hard line on issues that included requiring photo identification to vote, cleaning up the voter rolls, keeping primaries closed and offering ballots in English only.

He will succeed Democrat Allison Lundergan Grimes, who is in her second term and could not run again due to term limits.

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8:40 p.m.

Republican Daniel Cameron has been elected Kentucky attorney general, becoming the first African American in the state’s history to win the office.

Cameron was backed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and President Donald Trump. Cameron will also be the first Republican in 70 years to be the state’s top prosecutor when he takes office.

Cameron defeated Democrat Greg Stumbo, who served as attorney general from 2004 to 2008 and is also a former speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives. Cameron overcame challenges from Stumbo about his lack of experience and a lawsuit from a Louisville resident that said Cameron didn’t have enough years as a practicing attorney to run for the office.

Cameron worked as McConnell’s general counsel and helped push through the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. He also played football at the University of Louisville.

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8:30 p.m.

Republican Mike Harmon has been re-elected as Kentucky auditor.

Harmon defeated Democrat Sheri Donahue, a cybersecurity expert who audited weapons projects for the U.S. Navy.

Harmon, a former state representative, said his job since getting elected in 2015 has been to “follow the data” wherever it leads. The auditor is in charge of overseeing audits of state agencies and county governments.

Harmon’s office performed an audit of two of the state’s largest public pension systems and released the results in August. The audit reported the pension systems had not been properly disclosing information about how they invest money and pay investment managers.

Harmon was a state legislator from central Kentucky before he was elected auditor.

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8:20 p.m.

Republican Ryan Quarles has been re-elected as Kentucky commissioner of agriculture.

Quarles defeated Democrat Robert Conway, a farmer from Scott County. Quarles says he has expanded the Kentucky Proud brand in his first term and touted the growth of the hemp industry in the state. He says about 1,000 Kentucky farmers are growing the crop.

Quarles has said he supports legalizing marijuana for medical purposes, but says it should be up to the General Assembly to make that decision. Conway was a strong supporter of medicinal marijuana for pain relief for cancer patients and others.

Quarles has worked to expand markets available to farmers and said he is the first ag commissioner to have staff who focus on international trade.

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7:50 p.m.

Republican incumbent Allison Ball has won a second term as Kentucky’s treasurer.

Ball defeated Democrat Michael Bowman, a bank executive and former legislative aide on Louisville’s Metro Council.

Ball, of Prestonsburg, says in her first term as treasurer she has been a watchdog of taxpayer dollars, has stopped fraud and embezzlement attempts and promoted financial literacy.

Ball supported a recently passed state law that established the Kentucky Financial Empowerment Commission, which is charged with improving the financial literacy of Kentuckians. Ball was also named the chair of the National Association of State Treasurer’s Financial Education and Empowerment Committee.

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7 p.m.

Polls across Kentucky have closed. Voters in the western half of the state who are in line as of 6 p.m. CST will be allowed to cast a ballot.

Republican incumbent Gov. Matt Bevin faces Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear in the governor’s race. There are open races for state attorney general and secretary of state. Republican incumbents are seeking reelection as agriculture commissioner, auditor and treasurer.

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6 p.m.

The polls have closed in the eastern half of Kentucky, where voters are choosing a governor and other statewide elected officials.

Republican incumbent Gov. Matt Bevin faces Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear in the governor’s race. There are open races for state attorney general and secretary of state. Republican incumbents are looking for second terms as agriculture commissioner, auditor and treasurer.

The attorney general’s office says Kentucky’s election hotline received 77 calls as of 5:30 p.m. EST.

Polls in Kentucky close at 6 p.m. local time. Voters in the western half of the state have another hour to cast their ballots. Information about poll location and registration status is available online .

Voters in line at 6 p.m. will be allowed to cast a ballot.

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4:05 p.m.

Control of the Kentucky governor’s office is at stake in Tuesday’s primary election, as Republican incumbent Gov. Matt Bevin faces a close race with Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear.

There are open races for state attorney general and secretary of state, while Republican incumbents are looking for second terms as agriculture commissioner, auditor and treasurer.

The secretary of state’s office predicts turnout at about 31 percent of registered voters, which would be a slight increase from the 2015 governor’s race.