New Delhi, May 31 -- State Senator Robin Webb, a long-time lawmaker from Kentucky's 18th Senate district, has announced she is leaving the Democratic Party to join the Republicans.

The decision marks a significant political shift in one of the state's key rural districts.

Webb, who first entered politics by winning a State House seat in 1998, said her decision was shaped by a disconnect between her values and the direction of the Democratic Party.

In a statement, Webb said, "First and foremost, I'm a mother, a rancher and a lawyer with deep personal and professional roots in Kentucky's coal country. As the Democratic Party continues its lurch to the left and its hyperfocus on policies that hurt workforce and economic development in my ...