West Virginians are going to the polls

The West Virginia Weakly Reader for October 26, 2024

The start of early voting in West Virginia must have sucked the air out of the room in terms of other news worth noting this week.

Not that I’m necessarily complaining.

After all, West Virginians have finally started voting in an election ridden with anxiety over who will prevail at the top of the ticket and what comes next once the White House is decided between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump.

There’s a ton of attention on the presidential campaign. You can’t turn on cable news without being overwhelmed by the back-and-forth of it all, making it seem as if the race for the White House is the only thing that matters.

The presidential race is important, but all the focus on it is a pet peeve of mine because OF COURSE there are other contests that deserve notice. The race for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Joe Manchin (I-WV) is one of them. The contests for both of West Virginia’s seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are two more, not to mention the race for governor and the fact that all 100 seats in the West Virginia House of Delegates and half of the state Senate are up for grabs. And I haven’t even mentioned the even more hyper-local races for seats on county commissions and in sheriff’s offices.

And lest I forget, all the way down the ballot is Amendment One. That’s the ballot question that asks West Virginia voters if they want to add a prohibition to the state constitution that would ban medically assisted deaths, even though it’s already illegal in the state.

There’s a lot at stake. And while early voting — by all accounts — has been more than a little brisk, both West Virginia Watch and WVMetroNews published stories this week noting that the voter participation rate in West Virginia isn’t great.¹² There are a lot of reasons for that but if it comes down to simple motivation, the advice given by Judy Ball makes sense. Ball is the president of the League of Women Voters of Morgantown-Monongalia County. She told WVMetroNews this week that voters should “ignore parties and labels … and find an issue they care about, a reason to vote — and vote for that reason.”

I know why I stood in a long line in Berkeley County Wednesday morning, the first day of what is turning out to be a very busy — potentially record-breaking —early voting period in West Virginia. And I suspect those who stood in line with me for an hour or more did, too.

If it’s the presidential race that matters or something else, voters have until Saturday, Nov. 2 to vote early heading into Election Day on Nov. 5.

And if you need more information, both West Virginia Watch and Mountain State Spotlight have put together handy voter guides.

---

The West Virginia Weakly Reader (sources cited in the footnotes)

🚒 The Beckley home of the late Democratic Gov. Hulett C. Smith was gutted by fire Sunday night. Dramatic pictures published by The Register-Herald show the home engulfed in flames.³ State Fire Marshal investigators have yet to uncover a cause, saying the damage is extensive.⁴ The property is now owned by Bellwood Corporation, which is one of the myriad of companies controlled by Gov. Jim Justice’s family. I once interviewed Smith for a project I was working on in the ‘90s. I found him to be kind and generous with his time.

🚔 During Wednesday’s virtual media briefing, Gov. Justice touted the results of a week long law enforcement effort dubbed “Operation October Sky” aimed at combating West Virginia’s drug crisis. The administration said cooperation among some 30 agencies led to 70 felony and 176 misdemeanor arrests and significant drug seizures over seven days beginning Oct. 7.⁵ Gov. Justice then used the briefing for what Charleston Gazette-Mail columnist Phil Kabler called "an extended tirade against Kamala Harris.”⁶

👏 State officials say overdose deaths in West Virginia are down, again. The state Office of Drug Control Policy released data this week comparing the first four months of 2023 to the same period last year, showing a provisional 34% decline.⁷ By the way, today is National Drug Take Back Day. The take back is organized by U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and it’s aimed at preventing unneeded prescription medications from being abused. You can find a drop off location near you here.

❓ During Gov. Justice’s briefing, West Virginia Watch reporter Amelia Ferrell Knisely asked about a class-action lawsuit over alleged deficiencies in the state’s foster care system. He said he didn’t know a lot about it but that the case has “no merit.”⁸ The suit was filed in 2019, claiming an overwhelmed system is putting children in danger. A trial date has been set for March 4, 2025.

📢 Want to give the Public Employees Insurance Agency your opinion on the proposed premium increases and other increased costs the Finance Board is considering for the next fiscal year? The board met Thursday and approved a series of public hearings around the state next month.⁹ They start Nov. 7 at the Beckley-Raleigh Convention Center and conclude Nov. 21 at the Culture Center in Charleston. You can find the full schedule here.

😮 Raleigh County Prosecutor Ben Hatfield has stepped down from his post. Hatfield resigned Friday after months of controversy over misconduct allegations. Hatfield’s name is on the November ballot but he says he will refuse to serve again.¹⁰

🏭 Union workers at the Dow Chemical plant in South Charleston went on strike this week. More than 70 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers started picketing Monday, the day after their contract expired. They are demanding better wages.¹¹

⛺ Opponents of the camping ban city council in Morgantown passed last month have hit a setback. The city said this week that organizers did not collect the required number of verified signatures on a petition that calls for the ordinance to either be repealed or allow voters to decide the issue.¹² Organizers are expected to file an amended petition.

🤔 Martinsburg podcaster Tim Pool is suggesting that it’s time to cut back. Pool said this week that he’s made plenty of money but that his media company takes too much of his time to manage and he wants to focus on marrying his long-time partner with whom he is expecting a child. He also cited threats leveled against him.¹³ Pool filed a lawsuit against Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign last month and is among the right-wing social media influencers linked to September’s federal indictment that alleges they unwittingly produced content for a company that was secretly funded by Russian state media.

👍 Tu-Endi-Wei State Park in Point Pleasant will soon be part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. West Virginia State Parks made the announcement Monday, saying in a press release that the designation honors the Shawnee tribe’s efforts to protect enslaved people and the families they established within the tribe.¹⁴

What we’re reading (opinion and anything that grabs our attention)

• COMMENTARY: If WV lawmakers are saying the quiet part out loud, how bad is what they’re saying in private? ~ Leann Ray, West Virginia Watch

• OPINION: Unless something changes, election a toss up ~ Robert Rupp, Charleston Gazette

• Reporter’s Notebook: A vote of confidence ~ Steven Allen Adams, The Parkersburg News and Sentinel

• A Democratic ex-mayor is running for Senate in one of the most Republican U.S. states. Does he have a chance? ~ Chris Stein, The Guardian

• EDITORIAL: Early voting gets underway in West Virginia ~ The Wheeling Intelligencer

• Dope, dollars and despair: Two men vying to be West Virgnia’s governor traveled very different roads in the overdose crisis ~ Henry Culvyhouse, Mountain State Spotlight

1. West Virginia’s abysmal voter turnout a challenge for political parties and their local candidates ~ Amelia Ferrell Knisely, West Virginia Watch

2. Early voting in West Virginia starts in lead up to Election Day ~ Brad McElhinny, WVMetroNews

3. Gov. Justice property up in flames ~ J. Damon Cain and Rick Barbero, The Register-Herald

4. Cause of fire “undetermined due to significant damage ~ Mary Catherine Brooks, The Register-Herald

5. Weeklong investigation leads to dozens of arrests, drug seizures in West Virginia ~ Staff reports, WCHS-TV

6. Phil Kabler post on X

7. West Virginia Office of Drug Control Policy press release

8. Expensive foster care lawsuit headed for trial; Justice says the suit has ‘no merit’ ~ Amelia Ferrell Knisely, West Virginia Watch

9. PEIA proposes premium increases of 14%, 16% for West Virginia employees ~ Lori Kersey, West Virginia Watch

10. Raleigh County prosecutor resigns amid misconduct allegations, refuses re-election ~ Leslie Rubin, WCHS-TV

11. Union Carbide plant workers go on strike; cites failed negotiations ~ Blake DeJarnatt and Riley McIlmoyle, WOWK-TV

12. Morgantown deems camping ban petition ‘insufficient’ ~ Sam Kirk, WBOY-TV

13. Is Tim Pool Quitting his podcast? Everything we know ~ Daniel Seddon, Newsweek

14. West Virginia State Parks press release