WASHINGTON — Deep-red Kentucky was among the first states called for President-elect Donald Trump on election night.

In Frankfort, GOP state lawmakers picked up a seat in Lexington and retained their supermajority.

Incumbent Republicans in Congress were either reelected by wide margins or faced no Democratic opponent at all.

Still, Kentucky Democratic Party Chair Colmon Elridge said there’s reason for optimism.

“Look, it was a tough election cycle,” he said. “We absolutely understood that, but we were able to, I think, continue to build on the momentum from 2023 and will continue to build on to the next election cycle.”

Elridge said he was proud of Democrat Erin Marshall, a single mother who unsuccessfully challenged Rep. James Comer, R-Tompkinsville, in the race for the First congressional district.

One seat in the Legislature, representing parts of Fayette and Jessamine counties, flipped from red to blue.

“We saw that we were able to flip the Kentucky Supreme Court, helping to elect the first African-American woman to serve on that court,” Elridge said. “We saw that we were able to defeat a horrible, anti-public education amendment.”

Elridge, who is running for president of the Association of State Democratic Parties, said party leadership must be more representative of the whole country, including the South, and must bring young people to the table.

“We absolutely need to listen to the people across the country when they're talking about their economic needs, they're talking about their health care needs, do more listening and then deliver,” he said.

Elridge said Kentucky has a winning blueprint with Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Ky., who won reeleection last year in a state that Trump just won by 30 points.

The Democratic Governors Association recently elected Beshear to serve as vice chair next year and chairman-elect in 2026.