The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two houses of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbered years. The House is presided over by the Speaker of the House, who is elected from among the House membership by the Delegates. The Speaker is usually a member of the majority party and, as Speaker, becomes the most powerful member of the House. The House shares legislative power with the Senate, the upper house of the General Assembly. The House of Delegates is the modern-day successor to the colonial House of Burgesses, which first met at Jamestown in 1619. The House is divided into Democratic and Republican caucuses. In addition to the Speaker, there is a majority leader, majority whip, majority caucus chair, minority leader, minority whip, minority caucus chair, and the chairs of the several committees of the House.
The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia is the state supreme court of the state of West Virginia, the highest of West Virginia's state courts. The court sits primarily at the West Virginia State Capitol in Charleston, although from 1873 to 1915, it was also required by state law to hold sessions in Charles Town in the state's Eastern Panhandle. The court also holds special sittings at various locations across the state.
The 2006 United States Senate election in West Virginia was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat Robert Byrd won re-election to a ninth term. He was sworn in on January 3, 2007. However, he died in office on June 28, 2010, before the end of his term. This was Byrd's closest re-election.
From the time of the Great Depression through the 1990s, the politics of West Virginia were largely dominated by the Democratic Party. In the 2000 presidential election, George W. Bush claimed a surprise victory over Al Gore, with 52% of the vote; he won West Virginia again in 2004, with 56% of the vote. West Virginia is now a heavily Republican state, with John McCain winning the state in 2008, Mitt Romney in 2012 and Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020.
Evan Hollin Jenkins is an American politician and judge. He served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, joining the Court in 2018 and serving as chief justice in 2021. He resigned from the court on February 4, 2022. He served as a U.S. Representative from West Virginia from 2015 to 2018. He is a Republican, having switched his party affiliation from Democratic in 2013.
United States gubernatorial elections were held on November 7, 2000, in 11 states and two territories. The elections coincided with the presidential election. Democrats gained one seat by defeating an incumbent in West Virginia. As of 2024, this remains the last gubernatorial cycle in which a Democrat won in Indiana.
The 2008 United States Senate election in West Virginia was held on November 4. Incumbent Senator Jay Rockefeller won re-election to a fifth term in a landslide, defeating Republican Jay Wolfe by a 27-point margin. Despite this overwhelming win, this remains the last time that a Democrat has won West Virginia's Class 2 U.S. Senate seat. In both of the two subsequent elections for the seat, Republicans have swept every single county.
Michael Caputo is an American politician serving as a Democratic member of the West Virginia Senate, representing the 13th District since 2020. Caputo was the only new Democratic senator elected in the 2020 Senate elections.
The 2008 United States presidential election in West Virginia took place on November 4, 2008, and was part of the 2008 United States presidential election. Voters chose 5 representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.
Elections were held in West Virginia on November 2, 2010. Primary elections took place on May 11, 2010.
The 1978 United States Senate election in West Virginia took place on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Jennings Randolph was re-elected to a fifth term and a fourth full term in office, narrowly defeating Republican Arch Moore, a former Governor. Despite his defeat, Moore's daughter, Shelley Moore Capito, would later win election to this seat in 2014, becoming the first female Senator from the state. This was the closest Senate election in West Virginia from the five Senate elections in West Virginia that Jennings Randolph had won.
Virginia's 1999 state elections were held on November 2, 1999. Voters elected all 100 members of the Virginia House of Delegates to two-year terms ending in 2002, and all 40 members of the Virginia Senate to four-year terms ending in 2004. There were also elections for local offices in most counties. The elections resulted in the loss of Democratic control of the House of Delegates for the first time in 116 years, and continued the two-year control of the Senate by Republicans.
Mitchell Carmichael is an American politician. He is a former Republican member of the West Virginia Senate representing District 4 from 2012 until his defeat in 2020. Prior to his service in the Senate, Carmichael served in the West Virginia House of Delegates representing District 12 from 2000 through 2012. Carmichael was also a candidate for Governor of West Virginia in the 2011 West Virginia gubernatorial special election. As President of the state Senate from January 2017 to January 2021, he held the title Lieutenant Governor of West Virginia. After his defeat in 2020, Governor Jim Justice appointed Carmichael as West Virginia's economic development director.
Craig Philip Blair is an American politician and a Republican member of the West Virginia Senate representing District 15 since January 12, 2013. Blair served non-consecutively in the West Virginia Legislature from January 2003 until January 2011 in the West Virginia House of Delegates in the District 52 seat. Blair is also the father of former WV Delegate Saira Blair.
Stephen Baldwin Jr. is an American politician and former Democratic member of the West Virginia Senate, representing the 10th district from 2016 to 2022. During the 85th Legislature, Baldwin served as the Senate Minority Leader. Baldwin was the third Minority Leader since the Republicans took the majority in the Senate in 2014.
The 1956 United States Senate special election in West Virginia took place on November 6, 1956, to elect a U.S. Senator to complete the unexpired term of Senator Harley M. Kilgore, who died on February 28. 1956. State Tax Commissioner William Laird III was appointed to fill this seat by Governor William C. Marland to fill the vacancy until a special election could be held and assumed office on March 13, 1956.
Elections to the West Virginia House of Delegates took place on November 3, 2020. All the seats in the West Virginia House of Delegates were up for election.
Elections to state legislatures were held in 46 U.S. states in 2014 with a total of 6,049 seats up for election. Six territorial chambers were up in four territories and the District of Columbia.
The 2015 United States state legislative elections were held on November 3, 2015. Seven legislative chambers in four states held regularly scheduled elections. These off-year elections coincided with other state and local elections, including gubernatorial elections in three states.
The 2013 United States state legislative elections were held on November 5, 2013. Three legislative chambers in two states held regularly-scheduled elections. These off-year elections coincided with other state and local elections, including gubernatorial elections in two states.
