Republican Gov. Jim Justice has gained the West Virginia Senate race, defeating former Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott (D) and undertaking a long-sought GOP objective within the Appalachian state: complete management of its federal workplaces.
Flipping the Mountain State seat marks a key victory for Republicans of their quest to wrest again management of the U.S. Senate. They should win just one extra seat out of a handful of aggressive races throughout the nation to realize a majority within the higher chamber.
Justice, 73, is a former billionaire coal govt who was elected governor in 2016 after switching events and endorsing Donald Trump. He’s held excessive approval marks within the ruby-red state thanks partly to his folksy demeanor, dealing with of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Babydog, a 62-pound English bulldog that by no means leaves his facet.
Addressing the Republican Nationwide Conference earlier this summer season, Justice praised Trump as “an incredible man.”
“He genuinely cares. He cares about all of us. Every last one of us. And he loves this nation beyond good sense,” the governor mentioned in Milwaukee with Babydog seated onstage subsequent to him.
Tom Williams by way of Getty Pictures
Justice has struggled with enterprise money owed and attendance points throughout his time in workplace. Some Republicans expressed issues about his well being, together with his capacity to stroll or stand for lengthy durations of time. The latter difficulty may pose an issue for Republicans within the Senate in the event that they win a slender majority and require full attendance to vote on controversial judicial nominees or laws.
Republicans dodged a possible setback late final yr when Trump endorsed Justice over his conservative major challenger, West Virginia Rep. Alex Mooney, avoiding a bruising brawl for the nomination. Nevertheless it was incumbent Sen. Joe Manchin’s choice to retire that sealed the destiny of the race in a state Trump gained overwhelmingly within the 2020 presidential election, dealing an enormous blow to Democrats’ odds of profitable the Senate majority subsequent yr.
Manchin, who left the Democratic Celebration earlier this yr and registered as an unbiased, was appointed to the Senate in 2010 to exchange the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D) and went on to win reelection twice on the energy of his average model. Although he usually voted with Democrats, together with on judicial nominations, he was an everyday thorn within the facet of President Joe Biden’s expansive home agenda, blocking lots of his formidable proposals.
Saying his retirement final yr, Manchin mentioned he believed “in my heart of hearts that I have accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia.” He later flirted with operating for president on a third-party ticket however dominated it out.
With Manchin out of the race, Justice felt assured sufficient about his probabilities that he did little campaigning and refused to debate his Democratic opponent, telling reporters he was too busy serving as governor.
“The people of this state know me. They know me, and they know me really well. I have done almost zero campaigning,” Justice mentioned.
All Elliott may do is shake his head.
“One of the frustrating parts of the campaign is all the problems the governor has, for whatever reason, does not seem to be sinking in with your average voter,” Elliott informed The Related Press.
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See full outcomes from the West Virginia Senate election right here.
