FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky’s eight presidential electors formally delivered the state for Republican Donald Trump on Monday, aligning with state voters who overwhelmingly backed the New York businessman last month.
Several dozen protesters gathered in frigid weather on the steps of the Kentucky Capitol while the electors met without incident inside the state Supreme Court chambers.
“How fantastic it is that we live in America at this day and in this time,” said Republican Gov. Matt Bevin, an avid Trump supporter, before the electors quietly cast their ballots.
As secretary of state, it fell to Alison Lundergan Grimes, a close friend of Democrat Hillary Clinton, to announce the unanimous results in favor of Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence.
Grimes, a Democrat and the state’s chief elections officer, handled the task with no hint of emotion. Afterward, she said she’s proud of Clinton, who won the national popular vote but lost in the Electoral College, which gives an outsized voice to voters in states with smaller populations.
“You’ve got to respect that final score on the scoreboard,” Grimes told reporters. “And that’s what today is all about - respecting the score that’s on that scoreboard; the process that’s been set up that has been honored for centuries.”
In Kentucky, Trump won more than 60 percent of the popular vote, and a “Trump tide” washed through the legislature, giving Republicans control of the state House for the first time in nearly a century to solidify their control of the General Assembly.
“Voters have now expressed their preference for Republicans to drive the policy agenda and the mechanics of government in both Frankfort and Washington,” said Mike Biagi, executive director of the state Republican Party.
Electors were inundated with emails, letters and calls before the meeting, mostly urging them to vote against Trump. Kentucky is among states where presidential electors are not required to vote for the candidate who won the popular vote.
Bevin acknowledged the right of people who gathered outside to protest.
“The greatest thing about America is that you can come, without fear of challenge, to your government on any front, at any time,” he said.
Most of the people protesting outside were carrying handmade signs, including some that read “Save Us” and “Electoral College: Vote Your Conscience.” Protesters cited U.S. intelligence agency conclusions that Russia interfered in the election in support of Trump.
“I’m very alarmed that my nation has selected a president with all of these Russian implications,” said Cheri Via, a 58-year-old semiretired teacher. “I feel like we need to know a lot more about what is going on about that before this decision is made.”
___
Associated Press Writer Adam Beam contributed to this report.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.