Kentucky Senate In 2014, Alvarado was elected to the Kentucky State Senate representing
Kentucky's 28th Senate district. In 2016, he spoke at the
Republican National Convention. In 2017, he sponsored a medical malpractice
tort reform bill that was later struck down by the
Kentucky Supreme Court for obstructing access to the courts.
2019 gubernatorial election Alvarado was chosen by
Governor Matt Bevin to be his running mate in the
2019 Kentucky gubernatorial election. The Bevin-Alvarado ticket lost the general election on November 5, 2019, to the
Democratic ticket of
Andy Beshear and
Jacqueline Coleman.
Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health On November 22, 2022,
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced that he had appointed Alvarado commissioner of the
Tennessee Department of Health. Alvarado would resign from the
Kentucky Senate on January 6, 2023, and become the 15th Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health on January 16, 2023. He served in this role until his resignation on July 11, 2025.
2026 congressional campaign On July 8, 2025, Alvarado revealed he was considering a run for
Kentucky's 6th congressional district seat being vacated by incumbent
Andy Barr, due to the latter's candidacy for the
U.S. Senate seat held by the retiring
Mitch McConnell. After resigning from his commissioner role on July 11, Alvarado announced his official entry into the 6th district Republican primary on July 17. Alvarado has campaigned as a "
MAHA doctor," and emphasized his support of
President Donald Trump. On May 1, 2026, he was endorsed by Trump as well as
Speaker Mike Johnson. ==References==