Tag: 2018 Primary Election

Voter Turnout Up on Tuesday Compared to Last Midterm Primary

West Virginia’s Tuesday primaries saw an increase in voter participation compared to the last midterm primary, according to data provided by the Secretary of State’s office.

 

Nearly 26 percent of registered voters made their way to the polls this time around. With a high-stakes senate race, congressional primaries and state-level seats on the ballot, more than 318,000 residents cast ballots in the 2018 primaries.

 

West Virginia has more than 1.2 million registered voters.

 

Tuesday’s numbers far surpassed that of the last midterm primary four years ago. Just more than 245,000 voters turned out for the primary in 2014, which was 20 percent of registered voters at the time.

 

This election marked the first statewide vote under West Virginia’s new voter ID law.

 

West Virginia Voters Remember Teacher Strike at the Polls

From Morgantown to Matewan, educators and their supporters pledged to “remember in November” the Republican state lawmakers who held out on the raise they demanded this winter during the teacher strike. On Tuesday, they went to the polls to, as some put it, “make them pay in May.”

Carmen Soltesz, a Williamson middle-school social studies teacher, was among those thinking hard about the historic teacher walkout shortly before she cast her vote. A registered independent, she leans conservative, but was planning to pick up the Democratic ballot to support Sen. Joe Manchin. But Soltesz, 37, also recalled the united front of her fellow educators and school service personnel in the halls of the Capitol as they demanded a 5 percent pay raise and a plan to fix their health insurance program.

“I hope that that energy carries into the elections and the people that were those holdouts feel the backlash,” she said.

Their message may have been clear in at least one race: State Sen. Richard Karnes was defeated by Rep. Bill Hamilton, both of Upshur County, in the 11th District GOP primary, according to election results.

A longtime critic of organized labor, Karnes in 2016 called union members opposing what became the state’s right-to-work law “free riders.” During the teacher strike, and even on Tuesday, he trolled those on Twitter calling for his ouster.

Attempts by state Senate Republican lawmakers to block the proposed teacher pay raise helped extend the strike, which stretched to nine days in March. Some of West Virginia’s youngest voters also considered the holdouts — and the politicians who were the teachers’ biggest advocates. One outspoken backer, state Sen. Richard Ojeda, of Logan, appears to have benefited from his support: He earned more than half the votes in the Democratic primary for a U.S. House of Representatives seat in District 3, according to election results.

Ojeda was among those who drew first-time voter, Jillian Music, 18, of Delbarton, to the polls. The Mingo Central High School senior is a registered independent, and she had a personal connection: Her mother is an educator.

“She’s a teacher, and I’m going to be a teacher, so a lot of this stuff was based around everything that happened with the strike and stuff,” she said. “A lot of it was based on how [lawmakers] treated the teachers.”

In Morgantown, Democrat Dave Mebane said his wife, a teacher, sent him to the polls with a list of candidates to vote for.

“I’m really hoping that month-long political fight makes a difference in the fall and that we see some changes in the statehouse in particular,” he said.

Teachers across West Virginia posted pictures of themselves in “55 Strong” T-shirts Tuesday on a Facebook page many used to follow events of the strike. One post noted that the primary fell on Teacher Appreciation Day.

High Early Voting Numbers Possibly Attributable to Teacher Strike

This legislative session, thousands of teachers and other school employees walked off the job and onto the grounds of the state capital to rally for better pay and benefits. Many have wondered how the nine-school-day strike might impact the coming elections.

Depending on who you ask, you’ll get some pretty different answers.

“I don’t think it had anything to do with the teacher’s strike at all,” said WV GOP chairwoman Melody Potter.

Democratic chairwoman, Belinda Biafore, had a different take.

“Everywhere I go, to these events and rallies, I see an overwhelming turnout, Biafore said. “There’s a lot of energy and I think the teachers pumped everyone up and got everyone motivated.”

More than 68,000 West Virginians cast ballots early this year, according to the Secretary of State’s office. That’s about 23,000 more than voted early in the 2014 midterm primary.

Biafore said she thinks that as West Virginians have become disenfranchised with the status quo politics, they’ve become more active. Meanwhile Potter points historical trends for the high turnout.

“What I have observed, historically, with early voting numbers during off year elections since 2002, if you go back and look at the numbers it has steadily and heavily increased,” said Potter. “I think that people are realizing that their voice is their vote and they want to do their part.”

When asked what impact, if any, the teacher’s strike would have on November elections, both women said it would be difficult to know until their field of candidates have been set, but urged West Virginians to get out and vote.

West Virginia's Voter ID Law: Some Say It's A Balance, Others Say It's Not Needed At All

Having gone into effect at the beginning of this year, West Virginia’s new voter identification law sees its first statewide election during the May 8  primaries. While state legislators responsible for passing the law say it strikes a balance, experts opposed to such measures — here and elsewhere in the country — say it is a “solution in search of a problem.” Some organizations, though, are teaming with the Secretary of State’s office for public outreach programs to help educate voters about the law and what they need to bring with them to the polls.

The West Virginia Legislature passed the law during the 2016 regular session. Under the provisions of the new law, voters are required to show an acceptable form of ID to legally make their way to the polls. The aim, according to Republican leaders, was to prevent voter fraud while not burdening those who legitimately want to exercise their constitutional rights.

“It’s obviously always a balancing test — and what we did not want to do is, in enacting legislation to prevent fraud, to go so far that it was going to make it difficult for people who are legitimate voters to be able to cast their ballots,” said state Senate Judiciary chairman Charles Trump. 

“We worked pretty hard on this legislation to try to strike what we felt was the appropriate balance in a way that would not unduly burden any legitimate registered voter in the exercise of his or her constitutional franchise,” Trump added.

Max Feldman of the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law said strict photo ID laws in other states like Wisonsin, Georgia and Virginia are too tough. Studies by the Brennan Center show that as many as 11 percent of eligible voters in America do not have a photo issued government ID.

West Virginia’s law is much less restrictive, allowing for voters to present photo, as well as non-photo IDs to be eligible at the polls. There are also exceptions to the law, such as a poll worker knowing a voter or a person with proper ID verifying the identity of a voter they’ve known personally for more than 6 months.

Still, Feldman said the mere presumption of voter fraud is a scare tactic and is detrimental to the democratic process. He said a person is more likely to be struck by lightning than commit voter fraud.

“To the extent this law was put in place in order to combat that type of problem and the rhetoric that’s used to justify the law is that in person voter fraud is a major problem in West Virginia — the reality is that’s not the case,” Feldman said.

With the law taking effect earlier this year, the Secretary of State’s office has been involved with other organizations for public education on the issue. The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia is among the groups involved in these efforts.

“There are a large number of types of identification that people can use. However — and this is one of our concerns — the mere presence of a voter ID law on the books can suppress votes,” said Joseph Cohen, executive director of the ACLU of West Virginia. 

“Many voters don’t even try to go to the polls because they presume that only a driver’s license or some other photo I.D. that they don’t have is what’s required to vote,” Cohen added.

For more information on the Voter ID law, visit the Secretary of State’s website. Polls open for the 2018 primary Tuesday, May 8, at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.

Acceptable Forms of Non-Photo Identification in West Virginia: 

  • Voter registration card
  • Medicare card or Social Security card
  • Birth certificate
  • WV hunting or fishing license
  • WV SNAP ID card
  • WV TANF program ID card
  • WV Medicaid ID card
  • Bank or debit card Utility bill or bank statement issued within six months of the date of the election
  • Health insurance card issued to the voter

Acceptable Forms of Photo Identification in West Virginia:  

  • WV driver’s license or other WV ID card issued by the DMV
  • Driver’s license issued by another state
  • U.S. passport or passport card
  • Military ID card issued by the U.S.
  • U.S. or WV Government employee ID card
  • Student ID card
  • A concealed carry (pistol/revolver) permit  

Three exceptions to the law are applicable under state law. Additional details can be found here on the Secretary of State’s website. 

On Twitter, Trump Urges West Virginians to Reject Blankenship in GOP U.S. Senate Primary

Updated: Monday, May 7, 2018 at 9:42 a.m.

Just a day before West Virginia’s primary election, President Donald Trump has weighed in on the GOP Primary. With Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship gaining widespread attention in the lead-up to Tuesday, Trump tweeted early Monday morning — urging West Virginians to vote against the coal baron. Monday marks the first occasion the president has publicly spoken for or against any candidate in the race.

“To the great people of West Virginia we have, together, a really great chance to keep making a big difference. Problem is, Don Blankenship, currently running for Senate, can’t win the General Election in your State…No way!” Trump wrote on the social media platform.

The Republican president maintains a strong approval rating in West Virginia at 61 points, according to March polling from Morning Consult. He won the state in the 2016 election by 42 percentage points.

He also referenced the failed U.S. Senate bid of Roy Moore in a December Alabama special election. “Remember Alabama,” the president said. Trump supported Moore, who was accused of sexual assault against children, in the race against Democrat Doug Jones.

Trump encouraged West Virginia voters to support either Congressman Evan Jenkins or state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey over Blankenship. All six of the candidates in the West Virginia GOP primary for U.S. Senate have attempted to align themselves with the president, who are hoping to take on U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin in November. Manchin faces his own primary challenger Tuesday in progressive newcomer Paula Jean Swearengin.

Blankenship served one year in prison for conspiring to violate federal mine safety standards, a misdemeanor. He finishes a year of supervised release Wednesday, the day after the election. 

In a written statement, Blankenship addressed Trump’s tweet:

“The President is a very busy man and he doesn’t know me, and he doesn’t know how flawed my two main opponents are in this primary,” Blankenship said. “The establishment is misinforming him because they do not want me to be in the U.S. Senate and promote the President’s agenda.”

Blankenship argued that neither Jenkins or Morrisey could beat Manchin without his support, but he would prevail over the Democratic stalwart “even without the support of the establishment.”

“West Virginia voters should remember that my enemies are Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton and my opponents would not even be running as Republicans had I not resurrected the Republican Party in West Virginia,” Blankenship added. 

In early April, Trump appeared in White Sulphur Springs for an event billed as a roundtable discussion on tax reform, although the event was campaign-like fashion. He spent much of the event taking aim at Manchin while being flanked on either side by Jenkins and Morrisey.

He explicitly referenced the race at the end of the event, as he asked the audience to cheer for Jenkins or Morrisey in a demonstration of how the crowd planned to vote in the upcoming GOP senate primary.

“Patrick and Evan, good luck. I don’t know, you two. Good luck,” Trump said in White Sulphur Springs.

Polls open Tuesday at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.

 

Two Days Before Election Day, Morrisey Calls Out Blankenship for 'Ongoing' Legal Issues

 

Updated: May 6, 2018 at 8:20 p.m.

One GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in West Virginia says one of his opponents should be ineligible for Tuesday’s primary.

With former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship seeming to gain momentum as Election Day nears, state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey held a news conference Sunday to announce that he’s informing the former coal baron’s probation officer about illegal activity — in April the Charleston Gazette-Mail reported Blankenship failed to file a financial disclosure with the Senate.

“There are six candidates in this race. Five of us have obeyed the law. Don Blankenship is not above the law,” Morrisey said of Blankenship’s failure to file the disclosure.

Morrisey added that his campaign was contacting Blankenship’s probation officer “to determine if this refusal to comply with federal law violates the terms of the supervised release” under the Ethics in Government Act. That law calls for U.S. Senate candidates to file the financial disclosure.

Blankenship spent a year in prison for violating federal mine safety standards following the Upper Big Branch explosion in 2010. The blast killed 29 men at the mine in Montcoal, West Virginia. Following his release from prison in May 2017, the former coal company executive had his residency moved to Nevada. He finishes a year of supervised release Wednesday, the day after the election.

“Don Blankenship is not the man who can beat me. We need a conservative fighter to take on Joe Manchin — not a convicted criminal with massive ongoing legal problems,” said Morrisey, referring to the Democratic incumbent and likely matchup in November for whomever wins the Republican nomination Tuesday.

According to Blankenship’s original sentencing order from April 2016, the terms of his supervised release state that he “must not commit another federal, state, or local crime” among other conditions.

The website of the U.S. Senate’s Select Committee on Ethics says financial disclosures filed more than 30 days after the due date “shall subject the filer to a mandatory $200 penalty.” A section on that same website titled ‘non-compliance penalty’ says that the law authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to seek a civil penalty of up to $50,000 against anyone who “knowingly and willfully falsifies or fails to file or to report any required information,” in addition to other action called for by the committee.  “Moreover, anyone who knowingly and willfully falsifies or conceals any material fact in a statement to the Government may be subject to fines, criminal prosecution, and sentencing,” the website also states.

“I don’t personally think anybody should have to disclose private information,” Blankenship recently told the New York Times in an interview.

Asked by a reporter during Sunday’s press conference why he didn’t take the opportunity to address these issues in a series of debates during the past few weeks, Morrisey indicated he didn’t think Blankenship’s candidacy would have such an impact on the race.

“To be honest, I thought that West Virginians would see through the candidacy of Don Blankenship even more. And it’s apparent over the last couple days — as he’s been moving up, getting very close in the polls — I think it’s in the public interest to be able to talk about this information,” Morrisey said.

Greg Thomas, a spokesperson for Blankenship, said Morrisey is “desperate” and “grasping at straws.” He added that Blankenship has already alerted proper authorities he would be filing the disclosure late as a result of his complicated finances.

Through mailers, ads and other campaign materials, Blankenship has attacked Morrisey as well as Congressman Evan Jenkins, who is also vying for the Republican nomination for the seat. Jenkins rounds out the top three front-runners in the six-man GOP primary, which will be held Tuesday, May 8.

Well-funded Republicans have attacked Blankenship through the Mountain Families PAC. However, the Democrat-funded Duty and Country PAC has gone after Morrisey and Jenkins — seemingly in an attempt to place Blankenship in what they see as a can’t-win race against Democratic incumbent Joe Manchin.

 

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