West Virginia Democratic Party Story Archives - Page 2 of 5

W.Va. Democratic Party Chair Explains Political Campaign Strategies

While Republican candidates dominate the media leading up to next week’s primary election, there are also Democrats up and down the ballot running for state offices. Their campaign strategy, however, takes a different path.

Del. Mike Pushkin, D-Kanawha, chair of the West Virginia Democratic Party, spoke with Government Reporter Randy Yohe on the efforts to rebuild the party and restore Democrats to state offices.

The transcript below has been lightly edited for clarity.

Yohe: What has been the Democrats’ overall philosophy for running candidates in the primary election?

Pushkin: During the candidate recruitment process, obviously, we’re looking for community leaders, people who run on a record, and people who are qualified to do the job that they’re seeking. We’re recruiting people who are true public servants, rather than just people seeking political gain.

Yohe: In the state constitutional or Board of Public Works offices, there are single Democratic candidates, except for attorney general. There’s no candidate for state treasurer in the primary. So what’s the game plan for these particular posts?

Pushkin: It’s very difficult right now for Democrats in West Virginia. We feel that the people deserve choices. And we were able to field candidates in all but one of the Board of Public Works races. The thing is candidates on our side are far more qualified to do the job.

Yohe: What kind of work on the ground has gone into finding and running the candidates for all the open state Senate and House of Delegates offices?

Pushkin: It started with helping to rebuild the county Democratic Executive Committees, getting people on the ground in different parts of the state, and that’s a work in progress. We’ve got a whole lot of work ahead of us to rebuild this party, and to start winning back seats up and down the ballot. It is what we feel would result in a better government for the people of West Virginia. What they have now is a supermajority that’s the least transparent government we’ve ever seen and the least accountable government we’ve seen in a long time. It doesn’t really seem to respond to the will of the people.

Yohe: Kanawha County Commissioner Ben Salango was the 2020 Democratic candidate for governor running against Jim Justice. In 2024, it’s Huntington Mayor Steve Williams. However, Salango did consider running again. Can you talk about the agreement between the two men and the party and how that came about?

Pushkin: I can’t comment on private conversations between Commissioner Salango and Mayor Williams, but I do feel we have a great candidate for governor [in] Mayor Steve Williams. He’s the only three term mayor of Huntington and he was elected to three terms because he’s done a great job. People forget when he took over as mayor, Huntington was in pretty bad shape. He has really turned that city around and he’s got a great story to tell.

Recently, Mayor Williams has called on our current governor, Gov. [Jim] Justice, and the Republican legislature to allow the people to vote on a constitutional amendment to restore reproductive freedom in West Virginia. In state after state when the people get to choose, they have chosen to restore this right that has been on the books for over 50 years. I think it’s important to let the people decide and put freedom on the ballot this year. So we stand with Mayor Williams calling for this measure to be put on the ballot.

Yohe: How robust will Williams’ campaigning be leading up to the general election in November?

Pushkin: He’s going to run a great campaign. He has the benefit of not having a primary. On the Republican side, they’ve had a bitterly fought primary. And we have been inundated with commercials that really do not address the issues at all. While they’re fighting over who can run the most shocking ads and bickering over social issues that really don’t have a whole lot to do with the day to day lives of West Virginians, Mayor Williams is actually talking about real issues. He’s going to continue to discuss real issues that affect the day to day lives of West Virginians up until November.

Yohe: There’s the theory that intense primary campaign mudslinging by the Republican gubernatorial candidates might drive voters over to the Democratic candidate come general election time. Your thoughts on that theory?

Pushkin: We watch these ads from the Republicans running for governor. Is there any real difference between any of the top four candidates? I mean, their commercials are really just interchangeable. It’s all about the same things. And all of that is really meaningless when it comes down to the day to day lives in West Virginia. Mayor Williams is talking about real issues, he’s running a real campaign based on real issues that affect the lives of West Virginians. What he’s talking about is actually meaningful, instead of this ridiculous cultural war stuff that we see on the other side. I don’t really see any difference between the major Republican candidates, but we’re providing a real difference and a real choice for voters and Mayor Williams this fall.

Yohe: Anything else you want to tell me about this subject I didn’t ask?

Pushkin: We know what we’re up against here in West Virginia. It’s been rough for Democrats in the last couple of cycles, but we’re going to continue to keep fighting. We feel that people deserve choices. I trust that people are going to make the right choices in many of these races. We’re going to keep working and continue to talk about real issues, while the Republicans try to out-Trump each other.

W.Va. Political Party Leaders Assess Imbalance Of Power, Future Goals

As lawmakers prepare for the upcoming 2023 general session, they do so with a near historic imbalance of political party power.

The leaders of both state political parties went into detail on what brought them to this point, and their expectations for the future.

West Virginia Republican Party Chair Elgine McArdle said party dominance in both the general election and the state legislature – 88 to 12 in the House, 31 to 3 in the Senate – means the impact of this “supermajority’s” constituents will be clearly heard.

“I would hope that the conservative principles that have echoed through the state of West Virginia would continue to be put into law,” McArdle said. “I guess it’s just in conservative values on fiscal responsibility to carry through.”

Del. Mike Pushkin, D-Kanawha, is the West Virginia Democratic Party Chair. He said Democrats have a lot of work before them to organize from the ground up. He attributed the election losses in part to branding, blaming concerns about inflation and economy on the national Democratic Party. He also said it was no coincidence the historic defeats came directly after redistricting.

“The maps were definitely drawn to favor the party in power, the Republicans. In certain districts that made it very difficult for us to win,” Pushkin said. “We found that our candidates, if you look at their numbers versus the modeling that we had, really did quite well and overperformed. But it just wasn’t enough to overcome the gerrymandering that was done by the Republican Party.”

McArdle said the fact that so many candidates won, but every amendment Republicans supported lost was not a matter of voter disconnect. She blamed the defeats on a lack of voter education and research.

“Individuals have to do their own research and look at why a particular amendment is being pushed. And not so much listen to media or rhetoric that is being promoted by an individual or individual groups,” McArdle said.

“There were a lot of people who didn’t test the vote at all, one way or the other, for or against the amendments, because they just simply didn’t know what they were about.”

Pushkin said suggesting a lack of voter education and research in the amendment losses was an insult to voters.

“They voted no, because they saw it as a power grab from the state legislature, power grabbing by the Republican Party,” Pushkin said. “I think people still believe in checks and balances, people still believe in separation of power, something our country was founded on.”

McArdle charged her party’s elected representatives with committing to their campaign rhetoric as responsibility.

“They should all remember the promises that they made during the election and keep those promises to the constituents that put them there,” McArdel said.

Pushkin said the democratic hope is to work with representatives in a bipartisan manner on populist policy, not politics.

“The state has a whole lot of serious problems, whether it’s 7,000 children in foster care, our high rate of infant mortality, a whole host of poor public health outcomes, improvement of our public schools, access to health care,” Pushkin said. “I would hope that’s where we placed the focus and not on whatever kind of hot button political issue that they’re going to use to gin up the base.”

The 2023 general legislative session begins January 11th, and runs for 60 days.

What's Next For Republicans And Democrats In The Legislature?

Republicans bolstered their supermajority on election night but Democrats say they will continue to work for policies that help people.

Senate President Craig Blair, R-Morgan, said he’s buoyed by a 30 to 4 Republican supermajority (what he now calls a super-super majority) in the senate, but he also said that comes with a caveat.

“We’re really good at getting our candidates across the finish line,” Blair said. “But we got some learning to do on how to get amendments done.”

All four proposed amendments to the state constitution failed Tuesday night. Blair said, following the failure of Amendment 2 which would have given the legislature the ability to change or delete property taxes, the legislature needs to continue promoting a drug-free, educated workforce and do a better job educating voters on state revenues. But he said it will be tough to bury the political hatchet with Gov. Jim Justice who opposed Amendment 2.

“I find it off-putting that we’ve been called ‘the swamp’ and we’ve basically been called ‘mired in debt,’” Blair said. “We were called corrupt and that’s not true.”

Re-elected, Del. Mike Pushkin, D-Kanawha, said, as state Democratic party chair, he’ll continue a non-partisan push for policies to help West Virginians.

He did see an election night bright spot in voters defeating all four amendments.

“They still have a very healthy mistrust of Republican policy,” Pushkin said. “They did not want the Republican legislature in control of county budgets. They didn’t want the Republican legislature in control of our public education.”

Pushkin says any compromise in tax reform moving forward needs to be citizen-centric.

“It must be about giving tax relief to the people who really really need it,” Pushkin said. “Not just to the wealthiest West Virginians or to out of state corporations.”

Election results become official when certified by county clerks next week.

W.Va. Primary: Incumbent Face-Offs, Redistricting And Party Switching

Redistricting in West Virginia has led to some House and Senate incumbents running against each other on May 10th.

Incumbent Chad Lovejoy, D-Cabell, and Ric Griffith, D-Wayne, are colleagues and friends. Lovejoy, a third term delegate and Cabell County attorney, said this race is a bit troubling.

“It’s a bummer,” Lovejoy said. “The truth is, Rick’s a good friend of mine. He’s a good Democrat. He’s a good delegate. And it’s just unfortunate, but it is what it is.”

Griffith, who owns a Wayne County pharmacy, is completing his first term in the House. He said running against Lovejoy is disheartening.

“I care deeply about serving as does Chad,” Griffith said. “And so we’re just gonna have to face this and see what happens. But it’s an unfortunate circumstance.”

Both candidates were asked to explain some key issues they think need the West Virginia Legislature’s immediate attention. They said economic development with job creation and retention topped their lists.

Lovejoy expressed the importance of stewardship with all the federal funds becoming available.

“The federal monies from the infrastructure bill, the American rescue plan, there’s going to be a lot of decisions made as we go forward on how this money is going to be used in West Virginia,” Lovejoy said. “And a lot of that is going to be appropriated by the legislature. So I want to make sure that our area has a seat at the table.”

Griffith said tourism is driving much of the state’s economic development, but he said you can’t promote West Virginia without cleaning it up. He has a plan to clear littered, unsightly homes by offering incentives first, penalties second.

“I think we ought to have a fund that creates an ability to go to a poor person or just a negligent person’s home and say, okay, we will fine you,” Griffith said. “But you gotta clean this up. We’ll help you haul it off and if not, you will be fined.”

The entire 100 member House of Delegates is up for election. More than half the incumbents have no opposition in the May primary.

Half of the 34-member Senate is up for election. Republicans hold a 23-11 supermajority in that chamber. Several of the districts were realigned during redistricting, but the total number stayed the same.

A number of Senate primary races feature incumbent vs. incumbent, candidates switching political parties, candidates moving from house to senate and a former U.S attorney running for state senate.

They include:

District 1: Sen. Owens Brown, D-Ohio, and former Del. Randy Swartzmiller

District 3: Sen Mike Azinger, R-Wood and Del. John Kelly, R-Wood

District 7: Former U.S. Attorney Mike Stuart is running against Chad McCormick in the republican Primary.

District 9: Sen. Rollan Roberts, R-Raleigh, and current Del. and former Democrat Mick Bates, R-Raleigh;

District 13: Former Senate Democrat Mike Oliverio plans to seek office again, this time as a Republican and fellow Morgantown resident Barbara Evans Fleischauer, a longtime House Democrat. Both have primary opposition.

WVPB and the Secretary of State’s office have more information on the West Virginia Primary and casting your vote.

Registered Republicans Outnumber Democrats In West Virginia

The red wave that has swept West Virginia over the past decade now includes historic gains in Republican voter registration numbers, according to figures released Thursday.

There are now about 448,900 registered Republicans, or 36.8% of all registered voters in West Virginia, according to figures released by the secretary of state’s office. That compares to about 444,600 registered Democrats, or 36.5%.

“It’s an exciting day for the West Virginia Republican Party!” Roman Stauffer, the state Republican Party’s acting chairman, said in a statement.

An additional 275,000 registered voters, or 22.6%, had no party affiliation. The rest were affiliated with minor political parties.

According to the GOP, 11 counties switched from Democrat to Republican pluralities in 2020, and 24 of the 55 counties are now Republican majority or plurality. Berkeley County saw an increase of 3,694 Republican voters, the most in the state, the statement said.

In November, Shelley Moore Capito became the first Republican from West Virginia reelected to the U.S. Senate since 1907. Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who won his third term in November, is the first Republican attorney general to hold the position since 1933.

Democratic voter registration numbers in West Virginia have been dropping over the past decade, buoyed by criticism of former two-term President Barack Obama’s energy policies in coal-rich West Virginia. In 2014, registered Democrats in West Virginia fell below 50% for the first time since 1932.

Republicans made major gains when Capito won the 2014 Senate race and helped other candidates capture all the state’s U.S. House seats for the first time since 1921. After the 2014 election, the GOP took control of the state Senate and House of Delegates from Democrats for the first time in more than eight decades.

Donald Trump won 68% of the state vote in the presidential race in 2016 and about 69% of the vote in November. A Democratic presidential candidate has not carried West Virginia since Bill Clinton in 1996.

U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin is the only Democrat to currently hold statewide office.

West Virginia Dems Question Gov. Justice’s Proposed Income Tax Reduction, Criticize Lack Of Broadband Discussion

Democrats in the West Virginia Legislature are criticizing Gov. Jim Justice’s State of the State address as being vague on details about a major tax reform proposal and lacking discussion about other key issues, including broadband expansion.

Leaders from the minority party offered their response Thursday to Justice’s address during a news conference at the Capitol, with House Minority Whip Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio, and Sen. Richard Lindsay, D-Kanawha, speaking on behalf of their respective caucuses.

“It was very much deja vu. It was very similar to past state of the state speeches. Big on sound bites, little on substance,” Fluharty said.

Among Justice’s top priorities announced Wednesday is the reduction of the state’s personal income tax. Revenue from the tax makes up $2.1 billion — or more than 40 percent — of the current fiscal year’s $4.6 billion general revenue budget.

Justice said Wednesday he wants to cut the income tax in half for everyone except the state’s “super-high earners,” who he said would see a reduction by one-third. Democrats noted Thursday they are unaware of what income threshold would determine a person’s level of tax relief.

To account for the loss in revenue, Justice is calling for a slew of tax increases — including a restructuring of taxes on oil, gas and coal, as well as hiking taxes on consumer sales by 1.5 percent. Another proposal would increase taxes on soda and tobacco. Justice also called for a tax on the state’s most wealthy.

Justice also offered another unique way to backfill any lost revenue, proposing to put unspent federal coronavirus relief dollars in a “bucket” as a reserve. For months, Democrats had called on the governor to call lawmakers back into session to appropriate funds from the CARES Act and other federal dollars that have come to the state, although no such session ever took place.

“During that time since March, how many businesses have closed? How many people have been harmed by his conduct of sitting on this money designed to help them?” Fluharty asked rhetorically.

According to the state auditor’s office, the state had more than $665 million in unspent CARES Act funds as of Monday, Feb. 8.

Justice and other Republican leaders — including Senate President Craig Blair — have promised that the reduction of the personal income tax will be neutral or possibly offer citizens some tax relief. But Democrats said Thursday they remain wary of such a promise, especially with specifics on the proposed tax shifts not yet public.

“I do find it hard to believe that most West Virginians will see a net relief on their taxes, based upon what he said last night,” Lindsay said.

Democrats also took issue with little mention of broadband expansion in Justice’s roughly hour-long speech.

“Before the election, the governor and all the Republicans got together and promised broadband infrastructure. [They] promised it — you’ll have $100 million in the budget. We got one sentence on broadband last night in the State of the State — one,” Lindsay said. And even more importantly, there’s no $100 million in the state budget for broadband this year, not even mentioned.”

With Republicans holding supermajorities in both the House and Senate, minority Democrats say they’re hoping to have as much influence in shaping policy.

“Ideas, good or bad, usually don’t have a party designation — to the extent that I’m not going to refuse an idea just because it comes from a [Republican],” Lindsay said. “No one has a monopoly on good ideas or good policies. So, I hope that we are included in these discussions.”

Legislation on the proposed income tax reduction has not yet been introduced or made public by the Governor’s office.