Rep. Geoff Davis (R) Elected 2004, 1st term
Born:	Oct. 26, 1958, Montreal, Canada
Home:	Hebron
Education:	U.S.M.A., B.S. 1981
Religion:	Christian
Marital Status:	married (Pat)
Military Career:	Army, 1976-87.
Professional Career:	Technology consultant, 1989-2004; Owner, Republic Consulting, 1992-2004.
DC Office	1541 LHOB20515, 202-225-3465; Fax: 202-225-0003; Web site: www.geoffdavis.house.gov
State Offices	Ashland, 606-324-9898; Fort Mitchell, 859-426-0080.
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The commonwealth of Kentucky has gone to court more than once to assert its claim to all of the Ohio River up to its northern bank: This is one of the northernmost extensions of the South. The Ohio sees many different parts of Kentucky. Ashland, near the West Virginia border, is industrial, the home of Ashland Oil; the river here is bound in by tight hills that hold smoke and soot close in the air. Farther down the river, the country is more bucolic: Here Eliza fled across the ice floes in Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. Farther west, between Louisville and Cincinnati, are counties that still look like they're in the 19th century. But metropolitan growth obtrudes. Oldham County, just upriver from Louisville, has some of Kentucky's oldest homes, though the horse country is also sprouting affluent subdivisions; this is by far the most affluent county in the state. The three Northern Kentucky counties across the river from Cincinnati--Campbell, Kenton and fast-growing Boone--are urban and suburban. Overlooking the suspension bridge built by John Roebling 16 years before the Brooklyn Bridge are new buildings on the Covington waterfront while Newport is sprucing up, and office buildings and new subdivisions are rising on the hills in Boone County above the river and near the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport. The lowering of fares by Delta Air Lines in early 2005 was good news for the airport, which is a Delta hub. Controlled for decades by an organized crime syndicate based in Cleveland, Newport, with its panoramic view of the Cincinnati skyline plus its entertainment and nightlife, has become a regional hot spot; local features include the aquarium, Labor Day fireworks on the river, and its hometown status for one-time Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer.

The 4th Congressional District of Kentucky spans all these variations of Ohio River country; it also includes lightly populated counties just inland. Economically, it runs the gamut from coal mining towns to rich suburbs. Politically, it has some of the most Democratic counties in America, like mountain-bound Elliott County (70%-30% for John Kerry in 2004), and some of the most Republican territory in Kentucky, like Oldham County (69%-30% for George W. Bush). The three northern Kentucky counties across the river from Cincinnati cast nearly half the district's votes, and they too are heavily Republican; in 2004, Bush won the district, 63%-36%.

The congressman from the 4th District is Geoff Davis, a Republican elected in 2004. He grew up in Pittsburgh and graduated from West Point. He was an Army ranger and served as a helicopter flight commander, then directed Army air operations enforcing the peace between Israel and Egypt. After 11 years in the Army, he moved to Fort Worth, Texas, then to Northern Kentucky, where in 1992 he started a consulting firm that advised companies on how to streamline manufacturing technology. In 2002 he ran against Congressman Ken Lucas, a conservative Democrat first elected in 1998 when Jim Bunning vacated the seat to run for the Senate, and lost 51%-48% after receiving very little assistance from the national party. After some hesitation, Lucas decided to honor his pledge to serve only three terms and announced his retirement in November 2003.

That left Davis the frontrunner in this heavily Republican district, and he won the May primary with 58% of the vote. But he had a formidable challenge from Democrat Nick Clooney, famous locally as a newspaper columnist and television commentator and derivatively well-known as the father of actor George Clooney and brother of the late singer Rosemary Clooney. George Clooney appeared at fundraisers for his father and got Paul Newman, Kevin Costner and Catherine Zeta-Jones to write checks for his campaign. Dick Cheney and Dennis Hastert came into the district on Davis's behalf and this time the National Republican Congressional Committee poured in large sums to help Davis compete with the cash coming in from Beverly Hills. Davis said his opponent had more in common with the people of Southern California than with those in northern Kentucky. "Hollywood versus the Heartland" is how he described the contest; national Republicans called the Democrat, "Looney Clooney." Clooney said he was a moderate and supported the Bush tax cuts and opposed same-sex marriage and abortion except when the mother's life was in danger. He stayed away from the Democratic National Convention in Boston. The Davis campaign unearthed columns Clooney had written over a period of 15 years in The Cincinnati Post and The Kentucky Post, including a 1998 column in which he criticized gun ownership; Davis, in contrast, said he was a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association membership and supported gun ownership rights.

Even with Clooney's Hollywood connections, Davis had a big fundraising advantage: he spent $2.6 million to Clooney's $1.5 million. Davis won 54%-44%. Clooney carried 10 of the 24 counties, though they were mostly in the rural and mining areas in the eastern end of the district. In the three Cincinnati-area suburban counties, which cast 50% of the total vote, Davis led 57%-41%. Clooney said that his political career was finished.

Davis got seats on the Armed Services and Financial Services Committees, which cater to his experience. In this solidly Republican district he is likely to be a favorite for reelection in 2006.

Committees

• Armed Services (34th of 34 R): Strategic Forces; Terrorism, Unconventional Threats & Capabilities.
• Financial Services (36th of 37 R): Capital Markets, Insurance & Government Sponsored Enterprises; Housing & Community Opportunity; Oversight & Investigations.

Election Results (More Info)
	Candidate	Total Votes	Percent	Expenditures
2004 general	Geoff Davis (R)	160,982	54%	$2,959,526
	Nick Clooney (D)	129,876	44%	$1,448,282
	Other	5,069	2%
2004 primary	Geoff Davis (R)	13,957	58%
	Kevin Murphy (R)	7,672	32%
	John King (R)	2,434	10%
2002 general	Ken Lucas (D)	87,776	51%	$1,451,062
	Geoff Davis (R)	81,651	48%	$874,453
	Other	2,308	1%

2004 Presidential Vote Bush (R) 195,055 (63%) Kerry (D) 111,049 (36%)

2000 Presidential Vote Bush (R) 152,856 (61%) Gore (D) 92,768 (37%)

For 1992 and 1996 presidential results in the Fourth District, please see the Almanac 2000 online. Please note that these older returns reflect district lines as they existed prior to 2002 redistricting.

• Cook Partisan Voting Index: R +12
• District Size: 5,770 square miles
• Population in 2000: 673,588; 59.7% urban; 40.3% rural
• Median Household Income: $40,150; 11.4% are below the poverty line
• Occupation: 29.6% blue collar; 56.0% white collar; 14.3% gray collar; 13.0% military veterans
• Race/Ethnic Origin: 95.1% White, 2.2% Black, 0.5% Asian, 0.2% Amer. Indian, 0.0% Hawaiian, 0.8% Two+ races, 0.1% Other, 1.1% Hispanic origin
• Ancestry: 17.6% German, 13.6% USA, 10.4% Irish
• Click here for statewide demographic data.