James Edwards Cantrill was elected the 22nd Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky serving from 1879 to 1883 under Governor Luke P. Blackburn. He also served as a circuit court judge starting in 1892, and in 1898 was elected to the Court of Appeals bench.

The lieutenant governor of Kentucky was created under the state's second constitution, which was ratified in 1799. The inaugural officeholder was Alexander Scott Bullitt, who took office in 1800 following his election to serve under James Garrard in 1799. The lieutenant governor becomes governor of Kentucky under circumstances similar to those under which the vice president of the United States assumes the presidency. The current lieutenant governor is Democrat Jacqueline Coleman, who has been office since December 10, 2019.