Republicans expanded their supermajority in the West Virginia Legislature by picking up three Democrat-held seats. The GOP will control all but two of the 34 Senate seats and 91 of 100 seats in the House of Delegates.
Every seat in the House was up for reelection as well as 17 of the 34 Senate seats. Across those 117 races, Democrats did not field a candidate in 50.
In the House of Delegates
Republicans held onto the House, adding to their previous 89-seat majority by taking two of the Democrats’ 11 seats.
Forty-one Republicans ran unopposed. Only two Democratic candidates, both incumbents, Dels. Evan Hansen and Anitra Hamiton, both of Monongalia County, didn’t face a Republican candidate.
The nine Democratic seats that faced Republican challengers included the three that were vacated by Dels. Larry Rowe of Kanawha, Ric Griffith of Cabell and Joey Garcia of Marion. Rowe did not seek reelection and Griffith and Garcia ran for Senate seats.
Democrat Rick Garcia, who sought Del. Joey Garcia’s seat, defeated Republican Jon Dodds by a razor-thin margin.
Democrats lost the seats held by Rowe and Griffith when Republican candidates Tresa Howell and Michael Amos defeated their Democratic challengers.
The Democrat incumbents facing Republican challengers won their seats, including Kanawha County Dels. Kayla Young and Hollis Lewis.
The Democrats failed to pick up a seat in the closely-watched 97th district race in the Eastern Panhandle. Democrat Lucia Valentine lost to Republican Chris Anders by about 700 votes, according to unofficial results.
All 82 House delegates seeking reelection won their races.
In the Senate
Republicans gained a seat in the state Senate after Republican Scott Fuller defeated Democrat Del. Ric Griffith in the race to replace retiring Sen. Robert Plymale, D-Wayne. Plymale held that seat for over three decades.
With the GOP win, Democrats are left with just two of the 34 seats. Del. Joey Garcia won his race against Republican Rebecca Polis for the seat held by retiring Democrat Sen. Mike Caputo of Marion. Garcia joins Sen. Michael Woelfel, D-Cabell, who was not up for reelection, in the minority.
Seventeen of the 34 Senate seats were up for election this year, but seven races had no Democratic candidate.
Voters elected seven freshman senators, including Republican Tom Willis who defeated Senate President Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, in the primary. Blair was one of four Republican incumbents who lost in May. Republicans will now have to choose a new senator to serve as the chamber’s president.
Republican Craig Hart defeated incumbent Sen. Chandler Swope, R-Mercer, in the spring. Swope challenged his primary results from Mingo County, alleging voting irregularities. He later withdrew his challenge after state officials committed to train poll workers and county officials.
Mingo County is again wrestling with election issues after Democrat Jeff Disibbio, who was challenging Hart, was mistakenly left off almost 700 early voting ballots. While unofficial results show Hart winning by more than 10,000 votes, it may take longer to finalize the result as the state Democratic party vowed to “exhaust every legal option to ensure the integrity of our democratic process is upheld.