LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentucky voters are expressing their frustrations with the federal government and lawmakers are facing backlash. The Kentucky Democratic Party and retired Democratic Rep. John Yarmuth held a “People’s Town Hall” in Lexington, the district of Republican congressman, Andy Barr.
Yarmuth and the KDP said voters in Lexington are scared and are getting no answers from their congressman, Andy Barr, R-Lexington, concerning cuts from the Trump administration to Medicaid, veteran’s health care and food assistance.
“I think people are seeing that we have a lawless administration in Washington, and they’re concerned as I am,” Yarmuth said.
Yarmuth and KDP Chairman Colmon Elridge along with Morgan Eaves, the executive director of KDP, spoke to around 200 people at the Lyric Theater in Lexington. Much like similar town halls across the country, they called out Barr and other Republican lawmakers for not speaking directly with the voters.
“The way the national Republican Party feels about their policies, they’re afraid to go out and defend their policies in public and I think Andy is too,” Yarmuth said.
“People are very concerned and it seems like he’s playing chicken; he doesn’t want to be in front of his constituents, he doesn’t want to hear how people are feeling,” said Lexington resident Donna Meers.
Meers said her biggest concern is cuts to the U.S. Department of Education.
“I was a special education teacher for over 30 years. My whole career has been serving students who have special needs and so I’m very concerned about them,” Meers said.
Republican Party of Kentucky spokesperson Andy Westberry said Wednesday’s town hall was clearly a partisan protest. He believes many of the others labeled non-partisan, including one this past Saturday also in Lexington, have a slant too.
“You look at some of the footage of these town halls across the country and it’s clear they’re all Democrat activists. Lord knows the one on Saturday that was held by the Kentucky League of Vipers was,” Westberry said.
Barr won his last election by 25 points and President Donald Trump won Kentucky by 30 points. Westberry said Kentucky overwhelmingly voted for the president’s agenda and Barr is busy working on it in Washington.
“It’s a whole lot of entitlement demanding a sitting congressman show up to our event that we just want to blister you with progressive talking points; it’s funny, they seem like petulant children,” Westberry said.
Congressman Barr addressed the event on X and said, “Only liberal activists are upset with ending waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer money. The Democrats grandstanding and gamesmanship is embarrassing, and another reason why their polling is at record lows. I stand with President Donald Trump in his fight to Make America Great Again and to make government efficient and effective.”
Barr hosted a “telephone town hall” on Monday, March 24.
The KDP and Yarmouth also hope to flip Kentucky’s sixth district from red to blue. It was previously held by Democrat Ben Chandler before Barr won election in 2013.
They also encouraged people, particularly young people, to volunteer ahead of the 2026 election.
