Question: What number governor of Kentucky was the Kentucky U.S. Senator who retired rather than seeking re-election in 1998?
Context: Rocco M. Clarizio (December 17, 1916 – August 24, 1990) was an American Republican Party politician from Newark, New Jersey.  He ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1964 and for the New Jersey State Senate in 1977, but lost both times in the Republican primary.  In 1964, Clarizio became a candidate for Congress in New Jersey’s 10th district, seeking to challenge Democratic incumbent Peter W. Rodino.  In a historic primary where he was the only white candidate, Clarizio finished third behind two Black Republicans, William L. Stubbs and Dr. Harold R. Scott.  Stubbs, who became the first Black to win a major party nomination for Congressman from New Jersey, won 5,148 (63%) to 2,217 (26%) for Scott, with Clarizio finishing third with 892 votes (11%).  In 1977, Clarizo sought the Republican nomination for State Senator in the 28th legislative district, where Democratic incumbent Martin L. Greenberg was seeking re-election to a second term.  The GOP primary included three candidates, each aligned with a different candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor: Rev. James A. Pindar ran on a line with Assembly Minority Leader Thomas Kean; Joan Lacey Mazauskas ran with State Sen. Raymond Bateman, and Clarizio was allied with former Senate Minority Leader C. Robert Sarcone.  Pindar defeated Mazauskas by just 207 votes, 1,482 (42.04%) to 1,275 (36.17%), while Clarizio ran a distant third with 768 votes (21.79%). The 2010 United States Senate election in Utah took place on November 2, 2010 along with other midterm elections throughout the United States.  Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Bob Bennett was seeking re-election to a fourth term, but was eliminated in the GOP state convention.  Republican Mike Lee, who won the Republican primary, won the open seat. The 1998 United States Senate election in Kentucky took place on November 3, 1998.  It was concurrent with elections to the United States House of Representatives.  Incumbent Democratic U.S Senator Wendell Ford decided to retire, instead of seeking a fifth term.  Republican Representative Jim Bunning won the open seat. James S. "Jim" Alesi (born 1948) is a retired politician most notable for having served as New York State Senator, representing parts of Monroe County, and a member of the Republican Party.  Sen. Alesi retired rather than face re-election and a potential primary challenge in 2012. Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun, also sometimes Moseley-Braun (born August 16, 1947), is an American diplomat, politician and lawyer who represented Illinois in the United States Senate from 1993 to 1999.  She was the first female African-American Senator, the first African-American U.S. Senator for the Democratic Party, the first woman to defeat an incumbent U.S. Senator in an election, and the first female Senator from Illinois.  She was the only female U.S. Senator from Illinois until Tammy Duckworth who became the U.S. Senator from Illinois in January 2017.  From 1999 until 2001, she was the United States Ambassador to New Zealand.  She was a candidate for the Democratic nomination during the 2004 U.S. presidential election.  Following the public announcement by Richard M. Daley that he would not seek re-election, in November 2010, Braun began her campaign for Mayor of Chicago.  The former Senator placed fourth in a field of six candidates, losing the February 22, 2011, election to Rahm Emanuel. On June 4, 2015, Ritz declared she would run for Governor in 2016.  On August 7, 2015, Ritz announced that she is no longer seeking the nomination for Governor, but is seeking re-election for Superintendent of Public Instruction.  John Gregg, the Democratic nominee for Governor, has pledged to support her re-election effort.  Ritz was defeated by Republican challenger Jennifer McCormick. Joan Lacey Mazauskas (January 25, 1933 - April 23, 2003) was an American author and Republican Party politician.  She was the author of "Mayday!  Mayday!  Eastern Airlines In A Tailspin!"  (1990).  In 1977, Mazauskas sought the Republican nomination for State Senator in the 28th legislative district of New Jersey, where Democratic incumbent Martin L. Greenberg was seeking re-election to a second term.  The GOP primary included three candidates, each aligned with a different candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor: Joan Lacey Mazauskas ran with State Sen. Raymond Bateman, Rev. James A. Pindar ran on a line with Assembly Minority Leader Thomas Kean; and Rocco Clarizio was allied with former Senate Minority Leader C. Robert Sarcone.  Pindar defeated Mazauskas by just 207 votes, 1,482 (42.04%) to 1,275 (36.17%), while Clarizio ran a distant third with 768 votes (21.79%).  Her husband, George Mazauskas, served as a Town Councilman in Irvington, New Jersey. Wendell Hampton Ford (September 8, 1924 – January 22, 2015) was an American politician from the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  He served for twenty-four years in the U.S. Senate and was the 53rd Governor of Kentucky.  He was the first person to be successively elected lieutenant governor, governor and United States senator in Kentucky history.  The Senate Democratic whip from 1991 to 1999, he was considered the leader of the state's Democratic Party from his election to governor in 1971 until his retirement from the Senate in 1999.  At the time of his retirement, he was the longest-serving senator in Kentucky's history, a mark which was then surpassed by Mitch McConnell in 2009. Richard M. Erdall (born January 13, 1933) is an American politician.  He was the fortieth Mayor of the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota.  He served a one-day term on December 31, 1973.  Prior to this, he served as alderman for the City's 13th Ward and the President of the Minneapolis City Council, but was defeated in November 1973 when seeking re-election as alderman.  The opportunity to serve as mayor arose because the incumbent mayor, Charles Stenvig, a former police detective who had also been defeated when seeking re-election, resigned on his final day in office to become acting Chief of Police. The 1976 United States Senate election in Hawaii took place on November 2, 1976.  Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Hiram Fong decided to retire instead of seeking re-election to a fourth term.  Democrat Spark Matsunaga won the open seat.
Answer: 53rd