Ryan Quarles

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Ryan Quarles
Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky
Incumbent
Assumed office January 4, 2016
Governor	Matt Bevin Andy Beshear
Preceded by	James Comer
Member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from the 62nd district
In office January 2, 2011 – January 4, 2016
Preceded by	Charlie Hoffman
Succeeded by
Personal details
Born	(1983-10-20) October 20, 1983 (age 38) Georgetown, Kentucky, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Education	University of Kentucky (BA, MS, MA, JD) Harvard University (MEd) Vanderbilt University (EdD)

Ryan Francis Quarles (born October 20, 1983) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party from the Commonwealth of Kentucky who has served as Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky since 2016.

From 2005 to 2008, he served two consecutive terms on the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education as the council's student member. He served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 2011 to 2016. In November 2015, Quarles was elected Agriculture Commissioner.

Early and personal life and education[]

Quarles is a native of Georgetown, Kentucky, where he graduated valedictorian and class president from Scott County High School in 2002. While working on the Quarles family farm, he completed a triple major undergraduate and two master's degrees from the nearby University of Kentucky in under four years. Quarles triple major was in Agriculture Economics, Public Service & Leadership, and Political Science, and graduated summa cum laude with honors in 2005. While in school, Quarles took as many as 27 credit hours per semester and was on the Dean's List each term.^[1]

In his academic career, Quarles received a Truman Scholarship, Udall Scholarship, Zuckerman Fellowship, and scholarships from the Future Farmers of America and Toyota Corporation. Quarles earned four graduate degrees. As one of 25 Zuckerman Fellows nationally, Quarles was awarded a full-ride scholarship to Harvard University where he completed a Master of Education in 2009.^[2] Quarles also holds a Master of Science in Agricultural Economics from the University of Kentucky, a Master of Arts in Diplomacy and International Relations from the Patterson School of Diplomacy, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Kentucky College of Law.^[3]

Political career[]

Kentucky Republican Governor Ernie Fletcher appointed Quarles to two consecutive terms as a Council Member on the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education. He was also appointed an ambassador for the Kentucky Department of Agriculture.

As an undergraduate student, he was Chairman of the College Republicans at the University of Kentucky and that organization's State Political Director in 2004. In Washington, D.C., Quarles served as the Agricultural and Interior Intern for Senator Mitch McConnell. He also served as an International Trade Analyst for the United States Foreign Agricultural Service.

2010 election[]

In October 2009, Quarles announced that he would run for the Kentucky House of Representatives for the 62nd House District. At the time the District was represented by State Representative Charlie Hoffman (D-Scott). In May 2010, Quarles won a Republican primary election with 60% of the vote.^[4]

On October 2, 2010, Quarles was arrested in Lexington, Kentucky, for reckless driving. "A police report said Ryan Quarles, 26, was arrested ... about 3:10 a.m. Saturday. Quarles was driving ... through a parking lot, weaving through cars, the uniform citation said. The report said Quarles showed signs of intoxication and had a blood alcohol level of 0.067 when given a breath test. His blood alcohol level was below the legal limit of 0.08."^[5] Quarles pleaded guilty and paid a fine after the charge was lowered to careless driving.^[6]

In November 2010, Quarles received 8,508 votes (51%) to Charlie Hoffman's 8,287 (49%), winning by 521 votes. In 2011, Quarles was appointed to the Kentucky House of Representatives committees on Agriculture & Small Business, Banking & Insurance, and Education.^[7]

2012 election[]

Quarles ran for a second term to the Kentucky State House of Representatives in the 2012 election. Quarles faced former State Representative Charlie Hoffman whom he had defeated two years earlier – who filed to get his old seat back in a rematch as the Democratic nominee. Quarles defeated Hoffman, 54% to 46%.^[8]

2014 election[]

Quarles ran for his third term of office in the Kentucky State House of Representatives in the 2014 election. Quarles ran in a district redrawn by the Democratic-controlled House of Representative to be more Democratic, drawing in significant territory which had previously not been part of the district. He was made a top target of the Democrats for defeat of a Republican incumbent and his opponent, Charles Tackett, was a Scott County Magistrate who ran at the request of Democratic Governor Steve Beshear. Quarles won by his largest margin of victory, 59% to 41%, over his opponent.^[9]

2015 election[]

Quarles ran for Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture, a statewide race, in the 2015 election. He won the Republican nomination against fellow State Representative Richard Heath in a very close election, with 92,700 votes (50.39%), versus 91,273 votes (49.61%) for Heath. Quarles had been endorsed by the incumbent Commissioner of Agriculture, James Comer,^[10] and defeated Jean-Marie Lawson Spann in the general election.

2019 election[]

Quarles ran for a second term as Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner in 2019. He won the Republican primary in a landslide, defeating his primary opponent 82.21% to 17.79%. Quarles was the only Kentucky candidate with a primary challenger to win all of Kentucky's 120 counties.^[11]

Electoral history[]

Kentucky House of Representatives 62nd District Republican Primary Election, 2010
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles	2,081	59.99
Republican	Ricky Hostetler	1,388	40.01

Kentucky House of Representatives 62nd District Election, 2010
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles	8,508	50.66
Democratic	Charlie Hoffman	8,287	49.34

Kentucky House of Representatives 62nd District Election, 2012
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles (inc.)	12,408	54.03
Democratic	Charlie Hoffman	10,557	45.97

Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Republican Primary Election, 2015
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles	92,700	50.39
Republican	Richard Heath	91,271	49.61

Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Election, 2015
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles	563,013	60.08
Democratic	Jean-Marie Lawson Spann	374,077	39.92

Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Republican Primary Election, 2019
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles	193,994	82.21
Republican	Bill Polyniak	41,971	17.79

Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Election, 2019
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
Republican	Ryan Quarles	821,414	58.2
Democrat	Robert Haley Conway	545,099	38.6
Libertarian	Joshua Gilpin	44,596	3.2

References[]

External links[]

• Campaign site
• Official site

Political offices
Preceded by James Comer	Agriculture Commissioner of Kentucky 2016–present	Incumbent