SHELBYVILLE — Among the farms and rolling hills east of Louisville, the idyllic countryside is the site of a three-way battle between two retired Navy SEALS and an incumbent for the district's state Senate seat.

Navy SEALS Ed Gallrein and Aaron Reed are challenging Sen. Adrienne Southworth, R-Lawrenceburg, for a spot on the November ballot in the May 21 primary election .

Southworth was first elected in 2021 and is touting her experience in her reelection pitch. She told The Courier Journal she's running her campaign on "experience matters," which is the same tagline she used in the previous election.

Her two Republican challengers aren't relying on political experience. Instead, they're offering to bring a unique voice to the Senate — one that comes from a worldly perspective tied to travels around the globe and years of combat leadership experience.

While Gallrein and Reed are out to beat each other for the chance to represent Anderson, Henry, Shelby and part of Jefferson County, they're also working in tandem to take down an incumbent who sometimes finds herself at odds within her own Republican Party.

The Navy SEAL experience

It isn't easy to become a Navy SEAL.

The Navy SEALS, which stands for sea, air and land teams, were established by former President John F. Kennedy in 1962 and are responsible for providing military relief in crises. This may include carrying out missions against military targets, collecting information through special missions and capturing enemy personnel and terrorists, according to the Navy.

Only around 25% of candidates make it through "Hell Week," which is among the toughest training in the U.S. military and tests characteristics like physical endurance to mental toughness.

Reed enlisted in 1999 after graduating from Morehead State University and served for 22 ½ years. He traveled the world through multiple combat deployments, including Afghanistan, and retired as a Special Operations Senior Chief after serving his last deployment in South Korea.

Known for his impressive shooting skills, Reed said his duty often included being the one in the helicopter or on a rooftop covering his team.

“My thing was long-range and pistol shooting,” Reed said. “That's a gift God gave me, to be able to squeeze that trigger and have good front-sight focus and hit my target.”

Now, as a farmer and owner of two firearm-related businesses, Reed said he's running for a Senate seat because he wants to defend the American values of freedom and liberty.

Meanwhile, Gallrein served on seven SEAL teams and two special mission units over 30 years. Gallrein said he was recruited at 26 years old when former President Ronald Reagan was rebuilding the service in the 1980s. After graduating from Murray State University, Gallrein left Kentucky and started training to become a Navy SEAL officer.

“As an officer in the SEALS, I had never had the luxury of just being one of the guys,” Gallrein said. “Everything around me I was responsible for and everything I should have known about around me, I was responsible for."

He said he served as a leader on active duty for multiple combat deployments, and was a commanding officer in the Panama Canal zone.

He said he saw his time as a leader as "as a gift and opportunity. And you relish the opportunity to make those around you better."

Gallrein said he decided to run in the race because he wants to serve his community by bringing his knowledge and skills to Kentucky's Capitol.

Candidate similarities

When it comes to political views, Gallrein and Reed have similar stances on a few issues.

Both are supporters of gun rights and are anti-abortion advocates. For Reed, he specifically wants to stop what he called the growth of “unsafe chemical abortion pills.”

Medical abortion pills though like Mifeprex and Mifepristone have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and 96.% of people who used abortion medication reported successfully ending their pregnancy between March 2018 to March 2019, according to the National Insitutes of Health.

Reed was raised in Shelby County and currently resides there on his family farm with his wife and six children.

"Liberty is a team sport, and you have to be able to bring to the table the ability to bring people together to work towards a common goal or mission," Reed said. "I feel like I can bring that to the table with my background as a Navy SEAL."

While Gallrein was born and raised on dairy farm in Jefferson County, he now lives in Shelbyville with his wife and four kids and works on the family farm there.

“I grew up in very rural Kentucky, and now I've had the benefit of seeing different areas in Kentucky in addition to seeing the entire world through the lens of a senior military officer and an adviser for foreign policy and national security,” Gallrein said.

Candidate differences

While there aren't many differences between the platforms for the two candidates, each has some different priorities.

For Reed, he said the main focus would be advocating for school-choice legislation if he wins the Senate seat.

“I'm a big school-choice guy,” Reed said. “I feel like the money should follow students and not the systems. I think if we do that, it'll add competition to the school educational industry.”

School choice has been a popular push for the Republican Party in Kentucky. This year, a constitutional amendmen t on the November ballot will ask voters whether to amend the state's constitution to allow state dollars to go to non-public schools. If the measure is approved by voters, it's likely a bill outlining the Republican's school-choice program would be introduced in the 2025 legislative session.

Reed also said he wants to be a voice for “we the people,” which includes those who appreciate religious freedom, medical freedom and parents who want a say in what their kids learn at school.

Gallrein though calls himself a "Reagan Republican," which usually entails advocating for policies like lowering taxes and limiting government regulations.

If elected, Gallrein said some of his top priorities include supporting law enforcement and first responders, establishing welfare-to-work requirements and eliminating the state income tax.

Additionally, Gallrein wants to look into expanding and adding ROTC programs at Kentucky colleges, universities and high schools.

"I intend to explore why we don't, for instance ... have a Navy Marine Corps ROTC at the University of Kentucky," Gallrein said. "I'm going to pursue how we can bring those programs to benefit the students here in the state of Kentucky to give them opportunities."

There's also a bit of contrast when it comes to involvement in politics.

Although this is Gallrein's first time running in any political race, Reed previously ran against Southworth in 2022 but lost in the primary election.

When asked why he is running again in 2024, Reed said it's because "he doesn't quit."

"I catch a little heat from Southworth supporters, asking 'why would you run against a perfectly principled candidate," Reed said. "As a Navy SEAL, I cannot quit. I couldn't just say, 'I'm done. I'm out.'"

Southworth remains hopeful

Despite facing two challengers, Southworth said she's not nervous for the upcoming election.

"I don't really look at the circumstances in the moment," Southworth said. "I do know the way campaigns work. It's a long-term process and getting people to understand and trust you. With anybody I actually get to spend time with, it's very easy to build trust and confidence."

She's hoping that her experience in Frankfort and working as the deputy chief of staff to former Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton is what secures the votes to win.

The incumbent is in a unique position, though, and has been ostracized by her own party at times. Republican leadership sat her in the corner seat in the front row of the chamber, where she's surrounded by the seven Democrats.

The conflict between Southworth and the Republican Party stems from different incidents, including when she spread election conspiracy theories in stops around the area. Other times, she hasn't been afraid to call out members of the party, including leaders, when she believes someone violated the Constitution or broke the Senate rules.

"I've had previous incidents where I went straight face-to-face with the (Senate) President — not on the floor — but straight to his face and said 'you're violating the rules. What are you going to do about it?,'" Southworth said.

If Southworth loses the election, though, she said nothing will personally change for her.

"My identity is not in a political position," Southworth said. "I'm here because I'm still serving the same people I was serving before as a volunteer... I think it's hard because a lot of people put so much stock into a single election, and it's dangerous, really, for your personal life, if nothing else. But we'll know (May 21) how this lands."