FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) -- Democratic Governor Steve Beshear is preparing to be sworn in for a second term on Tuesday, just more than a month after being overwhelmingly re-elected, despite lingering economic uncertainty and widespread unemployment political foes had hoped would be his undoing.
The Dawson Springs native, who will become only the third Kentucky governor to serve consecutive four-year terms, is promising a "more economical" inauguration to show sensitivity to the state's economic condition, scaling back the traditional festivities that include a parade through Frankfort and a formal ball at the Frankfort Convention Center.
Beshear demonstrated political resiliency to win first and second terms as governor, having disappeared from Kentucky's political landscape more than a decade ago, after losses in races for governor in 1987 and U.S. Senate in 1996.