Ryan Quarles, currently the Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture, is holding a meet-and-greet event in Owensboro on Thursday as he runs for the Republican nomination for governor in the May primary. Quarles on Wednesday touted the role and reach of Owensboro’s ag economy, also saying he’d be a fierce advocate for rural Kentucky.
The event will run from 6-8 p.m. at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum and is open to the public. Quarles was up front that it’s a campaign stop and fundraiser event, but said anyone is welcome to come and no donations are not required.
“Owensboro plays a tremendous role for Kentucky agriculture, not just for what is grown in Daviess County but also for what passes through,” Quarles said. “Ever since I was a kid, Owensboro has had a reputation across Kentucky as being an innovator — with farmers that are known for efficiency and innovation, from tobacco production to grain.”
He specifically mentioned two companies in Owensboro as having national and international reach. He noted the history of Owensboro Grain and the quality of their work, saying the byproducts coming out “have simply been amazing.”
Quarles then touted the groundbreaking work of Kentucky Bioprocessing, which helped fight ebola using a tobacco plant for a vaccine. Quarles said he uses that example “quite often” when discussing how Kentucky’s agriculture affects lives worldwide.
He also said Owensboro-Daviess County has always had a strong farm-city relationship, adding that the community has a “phenomenal” farmers’ market.
“Owensboro, in my book, is one of the best cities that appreciates agriculture, and is also one that employs a lot of people and has a reputation across the entire state,” he said.
Quarles said the reason Owensboro-Daviess County citizens should support him for governor is because he “will not forget rural Kentucky.”
“The last 8 years, I’ve been there for Daviess County as your Ag Commissioner,” he said. “I don’t need a GPS to get to Owensboro. I’ve been there for the past 8 years, I’m here for you now, and I’ll be there for you as the next governor.”
Quarles also said that he wants to work with local officials to make sure local economies thrive and the communities have what they need.
“Right now it seems like a lot of our rural communities are forgotten about, and I’m going to be a fierce advocate of sharing the credit instead of taking the credit,” he said. “That includes innovations and job announcements and infrastructure improvements — whether it’s our locks and dams on the Ohio River, finishing out broadband internet, or recruiting businesses to locate beyond the ‘Golden Triangle.’ I’m going to be an active advocate for rural Kentucky.”
Quarles’ campaign site touts his conservative values of being “pro-life, pro-gun, pro-family.” It also lists some of his top issues as being tough on crime and supporting the police, improving education, cutting taxes and growing the economy, and having energy independence.
Quarles was elected to his current position in 2015 and was re-elected in 2019. Quarles is a former Republican member of the Kentucky House of Representatives, representing District 62 from 2010 to 2015. He resigned after he was elected Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture.
Under his leadership, the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) started several new programs, including initiatives to combat hunger and connect Kentucky farmers to new markets.
There will be 12 candidates on the ballot in the Republican primary for governor on May 16. The other candidates are: Daniel Cameron, Jacob Clark, David Cooper, Bob DeVore, Eric Deters, Mike Harmon, Alan Keck, Kelly Knight Craft, Dennis Ray Ormerod, Johnny Ray Rice, and Robbie Smith.
