Event Home

Mitch McConnell is the United States Senate Republican Leader. On January 3, 2023, he became the longest-serving Senate Party Leader in American history, elected to lead the Republican conference nine times since 2006.

From 2015 to 2021, McConnell served as Senate Majority Leader. He is only the second Kentuckian to ever be Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate. The first, Senator Alben Barkley, led the Democrats from 1937 to 1949.

McConnell previously served in leadership as the Majority Whip in the 108th and 109th Congresses and as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee during the 1998 and 2000 election cycles.

McConnell has been praised in numerous media outlets for his consequential Senate leadership. He’s been called “the most important Republican since Ronald Reagan” and “the most conservative leader of either party in the history of the Senate.” A veteran political commentator titled him as the “most effective floor leader in either party I've ever seen.”

TIME Magazine thrice named McConnell one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.

McConnell led a transformation of the federal judiciary in a victory for the rule of law and the Constitution. His consequential decision to follow precedent and keep a Supreme Court vacancy open during the 2016 presidential election gave him the opportunity to confirm three justices as Majority Leader. In four years, he also prioritized the confirmation of 30% of circuit court judges nationwide and a total of 234 lifetime appointments to the federal bench.

First elected to the Senate in 1984, McConnell is Kentucky’s longest-serving senator. He made history that year as the only Republican challenger in the country to defeat an incumbent Democrat and as the first Republican to win a statewide Kentucky race since 1968. On November 3, 2020, he was elected to a record seventh term, winning 117 of the Commonwealth’s 120 counties.

TIME Magazine thrice named him one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.

McConnell graduated with honors from the University of Louisville College of Arts and Sciences, where he served as student body president. He also is a graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Law, where he was elected president of the Student Bar Association.

McConnell worked as an intern on Capitol Hill for Senator John Sherman Cooper before serving as chief legislative assistant to Senator Marlow Cook and as Deputy Assistant Attorney General to President Gerald Ford.

Before his election to the Senate, he served as judge-executive of Jefferson County, Kentucky from 1978 until he commenced his Senate term on January 3, 1985.

McConnell currently serves as a senior member of the Appropriations, Agriculture, and Rules Committees. He is the proud father of three daughters.

McConnell is married to Secretary Elaine L. Chao, the 18th U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Previously, Secretary Chao served for eight years as President George W. Bush’s Secretary of Labor. She is also a former president of the United Way of America and director of the Peace Corps.
 

Joe Arnold, Vice President of Strategic Communications, Kentucky Electric Cooperatives

Joe Arnold is an Emmy and Associated Press Award-winning journalist whose 20-year career in Louisville television news and radio included his role as Political Editor for WHAS-TV. 

He joined Kentucky Electric Cooperatives as Vice President of Strategic Communications in 2015 where he oversees media relations and advocacy communications for the statewide co-op association including through Kentucky Living magazine. He was honored in 2021 with the LaBerge Award for Excellence in Strategic Communication presented by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.    

Neil Bradley, Executive Vice President, Chief Policy Officer, and Head of Strategic Advocacy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
As executive vice president, chief policy officer, and head of strategic advocacy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Neil Bradley is responsible for the organization’s overall advocacy efforts. In addition to managing policy development for the Chamber, Bradley oversees its government affairs activities, political program, and relations with other business organizations.

At the Chamber, Bradley has led the national discussion on hundreds of high-profile policy issues, influencing legislation at the federal, state, and local levels. He frequently appears on broadcast and cable news networks to present the business community’s priorities.

Prior to joining the Chamber, Bradley spent nearly 20 years working in the House of Representatives, including 11 years working for the House Republican leadership. He served as deputy chief of staff for then-Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA) where he developed the legislative agenda for House Republicans, oversaw policy formulation in the leader’s office, and coordinated committee activity in the House. Bradley held the same position for Eric Cantor (VA) during his tenure as majority leader. Before that, he was policy director for House Republican Whip Roy Blunt (MO).

After leaving Capitol Hill, Bradley founded Chartwell Policy Solutions, LLC, a research, analysis, and advisory firm focused on public policy issues.

While working on Capitol Hill, Bradley was regularly named to Roll Call’s list of 50 top congressional staffers. The Hill recognized Bradley on its list of top lobbyists, and the Washingtonian magazine listed him as one of the Most Influential People in Washington.

Bradley serves on numerous boards, including the advisory board for the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University; the board of the Convergence Center for Policy Resolution; and the board for the Center for International Private Enterprise, where he is president and permanent secretary.

Bradley, a graduate of Georgetown University, resides in Chevy Chase, Maryland, with his wife, Kiki, and their son, Peter. He is a native of Sapulpa, Oklahoma.

Scott Davis, Kentucky Chamber Board Chair and Chairman & CEO, Field & Main Bank
Scott P. Davis serves as Chairman & CEO of Field & Main Bank, a Kentucky-charted community bank headquartered in Davis’ hometown, Henderson, Kentucky. He has guided the organization in this role since 2006, when the bank was called Ohio Valley Bank. During his tenure, Davis has led the instiution through a bank merger, two insurance company acquisitions, a name change and rebranding – all of which helped significantly grow the company’s size and footprint. Today, Field & Main Bank offers six banking centers in Henderson, Lexington and Cynthiana, Kentucky, as well as Evansville, Indiana. Davis champions the bank’s unique delivery model designed around the concept of modern craft banking® – a thoughtfully crafted banking experience that honors traditional values fused with modern technology. Davis began his banking career at Field & Main Bank (then Ohio Valley National Bank) in 1981 as a Trust Officer. In 1988, he joined Hibernia National Bank and relocated to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. By 1989, Ray Preston, then-Ohio Valley board chairman, tapped Davis to return to Henderson to head the bank’s administrative organization and oversee a number of the Preston family’s holdings. Today, Davis also continues to serve as Administrative Manager for the Raymond B. Preston Family Foundation. Deeply committed to the communities he serves, Davis proudly volunteers on the board of directors for community organizations, including the Henderson Leadership Initiative and the Welborn Baptist Foundation. In 2023, he was appointed to the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce board of directors.Davis earned his undergraduate degree in Agriculture from the University of Kentucky and a also has completed the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. He is a graduate of the Cannon Financial Institute’s Trust Administration School. Additionally, Davis holds a private pilot license and has obtained his instrument rating. He and his wife Pam reside in Henderson and Lexington are proud parents of three adult children, Betsy, Evan and Caroline and have four grandchildren.

Les Fugate, VP Director Public Affairs, U.S. State & Local, Canada & Latin America, Brown-Forman Corporation 
Les Fugate is the VP Director Public Affairs, U.S. State & Local, Canada & Latin America for the Brown-Forman Corporation, the largest publicly traded American-headquartered spirits company and among the largest global spirits companies proudly headquartered in Louisville, KY. Les directs the public policy and outreach efforts for Brown-Forman across the U.S. and Canada.

An accomplished former political aide, non-profit executive, and communications and public relations practitioner, he has directed numerous successful legislative campaigns and public affairs initiatives. Prior to joining Brown-Forman, Les served Executive Vice President for a public relations and public affairs agency where he serviced clients as large as Fortune 50 corporations and as small as local non-profits. Fugate served as the chief political aide to former Kentucky secretary of state Trey Grayson where he directed the communications office, legislative affairs, and local elected official outreach. He also spent time as an Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer of a non-profit.

Fugate is a Cum Laude graduate of Centre College and earned his master’s degree from Vanderbilt University where his studies concentrated on government relations, communications, and fundraising.

Les currently serves in a variety of volunteer roles most notably serving as a member of the board of directors and executive committee and as secretary for Leadership Kentucky, board of directors and executive committee of GLI the metro chamber of commerce for Louisville, KY, board of directors of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce where he serves as chair of the Competitiveness Council and the board of directors of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Foundation, board of directors for IMPETUS for a better Louisville, board of directors of Saving Our Appalachian Region (SOAR), Board of Directors for the Kentucky Governor’s Scholars Program, Vice Chair of the Presidential Advisory Council for Centre
College and on the board of directors and executive committee of the Kentucky Derby Festival where he has chaired several committees. He previously has served on numerous boards and executive committee including the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, the Kentucky YMCA, and numerous arts organizations across Kentucky.
organizations across Kentucky.

Kate Shanks, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, Kentucky Chamber  
Kate Shanks is Senior Vice President of Public Affairs for the Kentucky Chamber. She has been with the Chamber for more than six years and focuses her work on energy, environment, small business, and competitiveness issues. She is a lifelong resident of Kentucky and earned both a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Conservation and Management and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Kentucky. Prior to joining the Chamber, Kate spent nearly 12 years working for state agencies focused on energy and environmental policy and regulation and has held multiple positions relating to communications, outreach, policy analysis and design, and legislative affairs.
 
Ashli Watts, President and CEO, Kentucky Chamber
Ashli Watts was named the President and CEO for the Kentucky Chamber, the state’s largest business association, in November 2019. Ashli joined the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce in November of 2012, and during her tenure as Senior Vice President of Public Affairs at the Chamber, she has led efforts in passing significant pieces of legislation such as felony expungement, right to work legislation, workers’ compensation reform, unemployment insurance reform and tax reform. Prior to joining the Chamber, she worked at the Kentucky Bar Association and the Legislative Research Commission.

Ashli graduated from Campbellsville University with a bachelor’s degree in political science and history in 2004 and holds a master’s degree in public policy and administration from the University of Louisville. Ashli is a 2016 graduate of Leadership Kentucky, currently serves on the boards for Campbellsville University, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of State Chambers, and the Louisville Orchestra. She currently resides in Frankfort with her husband Ryan and two children, Emma, and Carter.