Steve Beshear | |
|---|---|
 Beshear in 2010 | |
| 61st Governor of Kentucky | |
| In office December 11, 2007 – December 8, 2015 | |
| Lieutenant | |
| Preceded by | Ernie Fletcher |
| Succeeded by | Matt Bevin |
| 49th Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky | |
| In office December 13, 1983 – December 8, 1987 | |
| Governor | Martha Layne Collins |
| Preceded by | Martha Layne Collins |
| Succeeded by | Brereton Jones |
| 43rd Attorney General of Kentucky | |
| In office January 7, 1980 – December 13, 1983 Acting: December 5, 1979 – January 7, 1980 | |
| Governor | John Y. Brown Jr. |
| Preceded by | Robert F. Stephens |
| Succeeded by | David L. Armstrong |
| Member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from the 76th district | |
| In office January 1, 1974 – January 1, 1980 | |
| Preceded by | Bart Peak |
| Succeeded by | Jerry Lundergan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Steven Lynn Beshear September 21, 1944 Dawson Springs, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2, including Andy |
| Education | University of Kentucky (BA, JD) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army |
| Unit | United States Army Reserve |
Steven Lynn Beshear (/bəˈʃɪər/ bə-SHEER; born September 21, 1944) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 61st governor of Kentucky from 2007 to 2015. He served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1974 to 1980, was the state's 44th attorney general from 1980 to 1983 and was the 49th lieutenant governor from 1983 to 1987.
After graduating from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 1968, Beshear briefly practiced law in New York before returning to Kentucky and being elected to the state legislature, where he gained a reputation as a consumer advocate. He parlayed that reputation into a term as attorney general, serving under Governor John Y. Brown Jr. As attorney general, Beshear issued an opinion that copies of the Ten Commandments must be removed from the walls of the state's classrooms in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Stone v. Graham. He also clashed with first lady Phyllis George Brown when he opposed the practice of charging an admission fee for visitors to view the renovated governor's mansion. In 1983, Beshear was elected lieutenant governor in the administration of Governor Martha Layne Collins. His most significant action in this capacity was the formation of the Kentucky Tomorrow Commission, a panel charged with making recommendations for the future of the state.
Beshear's initial rise to political prominence was interrupted in 1987 when he finished third in a five-candidate Democratic gubernatorial primary election. The Beshear campaign's sparring with that of former governor Brown, the second-place finisher in the primary, opened the door for political novice Wallace Wilkinson's well-financed campaign to achieve a come-from-behind upset in the race. For the next 20 years, Beshear practiced law at a Lexington law firm. His only foray into politics during this period was an unsuccessful challenge to Senator Mitch McConnell in 1996. In 2007, Beshear was drawn back into politics by the vulnerability of incumbent Republican governor Ernie Fletcher, whose administration was under extended investigation by then-Attorney General Greg Stumbo, over violations of the state's merit system. In the 2007 gubernatorial election, Beshear emerged from a six-candidate Democratic primary—largely on the strength of his pledge to expand casino gambling as a means of further funding social programs like education—and defeated Fletcher in the general election. Beshear was reelected in 2011, defeating Republican David L. Williams and Gatewood Galbraith, an Independent. He was ineligible for reelection in 2015 due to term limits imposed by the Kentucky Constitution, and was succeeded by Republican Matt Bevin. Bevin lost reelection in 2019 to Beshear's son Andy.