2018 United States Senate election in West Virginia
The 2018 United States Senate election in West Virginia took place on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of West Virginia, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections.
On May 8, 2018, the Republican primary voters of the state nominated West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey as the Republican candidate. In the general election, incumbent Democratic Senator Joe Manchin defeated Morrisey and was elected to a second full term, albeit by a margin much narrower than his previous election in 2012.
Background
Once a Democratic stronghold at the presidential level, West Virginia has become one of, if not the most, conservative states in the United States. In 2008, John McCain defeated Barack Obama 55–42%. In 2012, Mitt Romney defeated President Obama 62–35%. Romney won every single county. In 2016, Donald Trump won the state by a greater than 40-point margin against Hillary Clinton, with Clinton's performance the worst by either party in the state's history. Trump too won every county in the state.While West Virginia had been much friendlier to Democrats at the statewide level in the past, in recent years, the state has trended more to the GOP. While President Trump won the state with nearly 70% of the vote, Jim Justice won the gubernatorial election with 49% of the vote as a Democrat but changed his party affiliation back to Republican. Democrats also lost almost all of the statewide offices they held except for State Treasurer John Perdue who was reelected. In 2012, which was Senator Joe Manchin’s second most recent statewide election, he won with just over 60% of the vote against John Raese.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Joe Manchin, incumbent U.S. Senator
Eliminated in primary
- Paula Jean Swearengin, social and environmental activist
Endorsements
Polling
Results
Republican primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Patrick Morrisey, Attorney General of West Virginia
Eliminated in the primary
- Don Blankenship, former chairman and CEO of Massey Energy
- Bo Copley, coal miner
- Evan Jenkins, U.S. Representative
- Jack Newbrough, truck driver and navy veteran
- Tom Willis, army veteran
Declined
- Ryan Ferns, Majority Leader of the West Virginia Senate
- David McKinley, U.S. Representative
- Alex Mooney, U.S. Representative
Endorsements
Debates
Polling
Results
Libertarian Party
Candidates
Nominated
- Rusty Hollen
Constitution Party
Candidates
Denied ballot access
- Don Blankenship, former chairman and CEO of Massey Energy. Observers noted that he would be ineligible to run due to West Virginia's sore-loser law which states that the loser of a partisan primary election cannot appear on the ballot as an independent or with another political party in the general election. Blankenship was eligible to run as a write-in candidate. Secretary of State Mac Warner denied ballot access to Blankenship's campaign on July 26, citing West Virginia's "sore loser" law. After a lawsuit, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia ordered Warner to deny Blankenship ballot access on August 29, 2018.
Endorsements
General election
Candidates
- Mark Brazaitis, author and deputy mayor of Morgantown, West Virginia
Predictions
Endorsements
Fundraising
Polling
Hypothetical polling | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
;with Don Blankenship Results |