Kentucky's lone Democrat in Washington says Senate candidate Amy McGrath made a “pretty significant” mistake in saying she would have voted to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Rep. John Yarmuth, who is often seen as the state party's unofficial leader, told the Courier Journal on Thursday he hopes McGrath better prepares in the future.

"It could have gone smoother," he said. "By her own admission she made a pretty significant mistake and corrected it. I hope she prepares a little bit better for the rest of the campaign, I'm sure she will."

But Yarmuth added that another Democrat might need to enter the race to strengthen any contender against Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

“I think a primary might be helpful in this situation,” he said. "Because whoever is going to face off against Mitch McConnell really needs to get their game in shape. Certainly Amy would be a favorite in any kind of primary, but I think it would help her and if somebody else could beat her they would have demonstrated their strength as well."

McGrath infuriated liberals across the country when she told the Courier Journal on Wednesday she would have voted to confirm Kavanaugh.

Hours later, she backpedaled and said she would have, in fact, not voted to confirm Kavanaugh to the high court.

Other Democrats have joined Yarmuth, who represents a major voice within the national party as chairman of the powerful House Budget Committee, in believing that McGrath's early errors are reason for pause.

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Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones said there is renewed interest from state Democrats in him running for Senate amid McGrath's troubled rollout.

The outspoken University of Kentucky sports superfan said voters are yearning for authenticity from those seeking public office, and that McGrath has fallen short of that in the first days of her campaign.

"I believe, in Kentucky, people are OK disagreeing with you if they believe you believe something strongly," Jones said in an interview Thursday. "The worst thing you can do is to seem like your beliefs are malleable, and what's unfortunate is that is the impression that the first 48 hours has given some people."

Jones is recognizable to most Kentuckians as the face of a media empire dedicated to the Bluegrass State's obsession with college athletics. He has flirted with running for public office for years, but he has struggled to get support from national party leaders.

"I still haven't heard from any national Democrats, and to be honest, at this point that doesn't matter to me one way or another," Jones said.

McGrath's stumbles began when she said in campaign announcement on MSNBC that McConnell hadn't done enough to help President Donald Trump keep his pledge to "drain the swamp" in Washington.

Democrats and Republicans alike scratched their heads at the former Marine aviator's explanation, but that didn't stop donors from pouring $2.5 million into her campaign coffers within 24 hours.

Read more:Would Amy McGrath have voted Kavanaugh onto Supreme Court?

McGrath has raised another $1 million since Wednesday, according to her campaign.

"The record-breaking fundraising numbers show the unprecedented level of enthusiasm for Amy," Mark Nickolas, the McGrath campaign manager, said in a news release Thursday. "In just 24 hours, working people in Kentucky and across the country came together to support Amy McGrath’s campaign against Sen. McConnell and his corrosive D.C. swamp politics."

McGrath's troubles continued when she said Kavanaugh was qualified to be on the Supreme Court, despite saying she thought Christine Blasey Ford's accusations that he sexually assaulted her as a teenager were credible.

"I think it's credible, but given the amount of time that lapsed in between and from a judicial standpoint, I don't think it would really disqualify him," McGrath said.

Asked Wednesday if that means she would have voted for Kavanaugh, she said: "You know, I think that with Judge Kavanaugh, yeah, I probably would have voted for him."

Later Wednesday, she changed her mind.

"I was asked earlier today about Judge Brett Kavanaugh and I answered based upon his qualifications to be on the Supreme Court. But upon further reflection and further understanding of his record, I would have voted no," McGrath tweeted.

"I know I disappointed many today with my initial answer on how I would have voted on Brett Kavanaugh. I will make mistakes and always own up to them. The priority is defeating Mitch McConnell."

Democratic voters and officials have expressed dismay at McGrath's attempt to walk the tightrope in a red state that hasn't elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1992.

Opinion:Amy McGrath fired first-day missile at her own foot, not at Mitch McConnell

Yarmuth said it is a waste of time for Kentucky Democrats to court Trump voters, who delivered the president a 30 percentage point victory in 2016. He said the better pathway to defeating McConnell is running up huge margins in urban centers, such as his district of Louisville, and other Democratic strongholds such as Lexington.

"That's where you need to spend your energy," Yarmuth said. "And that should have been a lesson (McGrath) learned from her congressional race. ... You have to go where your voters are and make sure you've solidified those voters and energized them."

Kentucky poet Hannah Drake, who often speaks out on racial and social justice issues, said Thursday that McGrath needs to pick a side or step aside. She said that she had been willing to support anyone who opposed McConnell but that McGrath showed she isn't prepared to defeat the GOP leader.

"In just a few days you have managed to botch your campaign," Drake said on her blog. "I am unsure of who is advising you, but this is not the way to go. You cannot run as someone that is opposing Mitch but is pro-Trump."

Veteran Kentucky Democratic consultant Danny Briscoe said McGrath can't afford to keep making these types of mistakes and expect to win. He said the animus toward Kavanaugh among liberals and progressive groups had been known, and that McGrath should have been better prepared.

"If you knew his name, you knew he was accused of sexual assault," Briscoe said. "Now whether he did it or not depends on who you believed, but it wasn't a secret. It's not something that somebody who is thinking about running for the U.S. Senate shouldn't know about."

Related:5 things to know about McGrath vs. McConnell in the 2020 Senate race

Briscoe said state officials and party leaders he's talked with in the past two days want Jones or state Rep. Rocky Adkins to get into the primary contest.

"I understand what McGrath's people are trying to do," Briscoe said. "Trump's numbers are good and McConnell's aren't so she's trying to keep some of the Trump people for her, but it was not a good start. ... I think a primary would be helpful."

Adkins, who hails from Sandy Hook, came in second in the Democratic primary election for governor this year. He is the House Democratic leader who opposes abortion but has a deep following in rural areas, especially in Eastern Kentucky.

Adkins did not immediately respond to a request for comment left with a spokesman.

Health care professional Steve Cox, of Madisonville, has also declared for the 2020 Democratic primary.

Jones said that he is still mulling his decision, but that the increased encouragement since McGrath's announcement is something every candidate must heed.

"Everyone who has considered this race is now having to consider it even more strongly," he said.

Reporter Phillip M. Bailey can be reached at 502-582-4475 or pbailey@courierjournal.com. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/philb.