Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron won the Republican primary for governor, defeating a group of 11 candidates.

Cameron's win puts him against Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in a matchup conservatives hope to use to take back the state's top leadership role.

Daniel Cameron wins GOP Kentucky gubernatorial primary | Washington Examiner https://t.co/VYp3IR6YPa

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The background

"The state Attorney General held the lead from the moment the polls closed, with the race being called by the Associated Press with less than 30% of the vote in after Cameron jumped to a nearly 25% lead over his closest rival," the Washington Examiner reported.

"Some of the top issues the candidates campaigned on included the inclusion of transgender topics in education, fighting the Biden administration, and gun violence," he added.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who is backed by Donald Trump, won the Republican gubernatorial primary Tuesday and will face incumbent Democrat Andy Beshear in November's election. https://t.co/pKNAdPuXDH

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Cameron's comments

"Sounds like Kentucky is ready for a new governor," said Cameron, the state's first Black nominee for governor, in his acceptance speech.

"The Trump culture of winning is alive and well in Kentucky," he added.

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“Cameron started the campaign with a large lead in the polls and, for a variety of reasons, the other candidates were never really able to cut into that lead,” Tres Watson, Kentucky Republican political consultant, told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

“The Cameron campaign was able to effectively to portray him as the frontrunner and ride that initial lead to the nomination," he added.

Beshear narrowly won in 2019 in the state where his father Steve Beshear previously served as governor.

The win stood in contrast with Republicans winning many of the other top positions in the state's election, setting up a battle-filled term between Beshear and the state's conservatives.

Kentucky's Republicans are now poised to rally behind Cameron to unseat Beshear and bring conservative leadership back to the Bluegrass State in November.

The change could add to growing momentum for Republicans nationwide as the 2024 presidential election also continues its efforts to confirm a nominee to run against President Joe Biden next year. The Trump-backed candidate adds to the former president's wins as he seeks a victory in a potential repeat election against Biden to return to the White House despite losing in the 2020 election.