Sen. Paul releases new campaign ad criticizing transgender athletes

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - The mid-term elections are now less than six weeks away. That’s as the race for a US Senate seat is heating up.

On Wednesday Senator Rand Paul, who is seeking re-election, released a new TV ad featuring an alliance with Riley Gaines, a former UK swimmer who has openly criticized transgender athletes competing in women’s sports.

“But for girls across America that dream is being taken away by men competing in women’s sports. Sadly, few stood up for me,” Gaines said.

WKYT asked Sen. Paul if voters will have a chance to see him debate his opponent before the midterm elections.

“We’re troubled by some of the advocacy for violence coming from the other campaign, that’s given us pause. We’ll discuss this more next week but today we’re trying to stick with just the issue of women in sports and Riley Gaines advocacy and I’m excited to endorse what Riley is doing, she’s become a spokesman nationwide on this issue and this is a big issue for a lot of women in athletics,” Paul said.

Charles Booker, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, spoke at a rally Tuesday night in Madison County. We asked him about some of the challenges he’s experienced in this race to the ballot box.

“The cynicism, the apathy that a lot of folks have, that have been frustrated for a long time, which I get that, we’ve been ignored for a long time. A lot of folks question whether change is even possible,” Booker said.

In response to this newest ad, Booker returned back to the debate over abortion access.

“Parents across Kentucky are terrified that Rand Paul is the leading advocate for a full and complete ban on abortion, even if their daughter is tragically raped, a victim of incest, or will die from pregnancy,” Booker said.

Gaines says she was initially planning to attend dental school, but is now taking a year off to pursue the cause and bring awareness to an issue she says is very personal and important to her.