Kentucky's 5th Congressional District — 2026 Candidates

Ned Pillersdorf is the Democratic nominee for Kentucky's 5th Congressional District. A Prestonsburg attorney with a poverty-focused law practice of 44 years, he holds degrees from Vanderbilt University and the McGeorge School of Law, according to his campaign site and the Kentucky Lantern's voter guide.

Hal Rogers has represented Kentucky's 5th Congressional District since 1981 and chaired the House Appropriations Committee from 2011 through 2016, per the campaign site. The site credits his vision with spurring regional organizations such as Operation UNITE and Shaping Our Appalachian Region, per the campaign site.

Gerardo Serrano works as a farmer, according to the Politics1 Kentucky candidate roundup, and has run for Kentucky's 5th Congressional District in several previous election cycles before filing as an independent for 2026. The campaign site quotes Serrano saying the two-party system was left behind because neither party puts ordinary Americans first, and that Congress, not the executive branch alone, must authorize military action.

Mikel Wein works as an archaeologist, according to the Politics1 Kentucky candidate roundup. Wein has deep family roots in Letcher County, Kentucky, living on land the family has held on the mother's side since the mid-1800s, per the campaign site. Wein is running as an independent for Kentucky's 5th Congressional District on a platform that includes a proposed 'Resilient Community Corps' to help eastern Kentucky communities recover from flooding and economic decline, along with support for the Medicare for All Act of 2025, according to the campaign site.