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Justice: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Cole: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% Tie: 40–50% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Elections in West Virginia |
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The 2016 West Virginia gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2016, to elect the Governor of West Virginia, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. The primaries were held on May 10.
Incumbent Democratic Governor Earl Ray Tomblin was barred from running for a second full term. He had ascended to the governorship upon Joe Manchin's resignation in 2010, won a 2011 special election to complete the term, and won a full term in 2012. Under the West Virginia Constitution, a partial term counts toward the limit of two consecutive terms.
Democratic nominee Jim Justice, a coal and agriculture businessman, won the open seat with a plurality of the vote, defeating Republican state senator Bill Cole and former state senator Charlotte Pritt, who ran as a member of the Mountain Party. As of 2024, this is the last time a Democrat was elected Governor of West Virginia. Having switched parties in August 2017, Justice was re-elected as a Republican in 2020; his party switch gave Republicans a trifecta in the state for the first time since 1931. [1]
In November 2010, Democratic Governor Joe Manchin resigned after being elected to the U.S. Senate. Earl Ray Tomblin, the president of the West Virginia Senate (with the honorary title of lieutenant governor), became acting governor, won an October 2011 special election to complete the term, and won a full term in the regularly scheduled 2012 election. Tomblin was ineligible to run for re-election in 2016 as the Constitution of West Virginia limits governors to two consecutive terms regardless of whether they are full or partial terms. However, governors are re-eligible after four years out of office. [2] [3]
After publicly speculating he would run for his former office, Manchin was considered a heavy favorite in the 2016 race, but he announced on April 19, 2015 that he would remain in the Senate instead. [4]
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Turnout | 258,350 votes | ||||||||||||||||
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Results by county. Blue indicates a win by Justice, green a win by Goodwin, and yellow a win by Kessler. |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jim Justice | Booth Goodwin | Jeff Kessler | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
MetroNews | April 22–May 2, 2016 | 315 | ± 4.0% | 32% | 27% | 23% | 18% |
Public Policy Polling | April 29–May 1, 2016 | 637 | ± 3.9% | 37% | 23% | 19% | 21% |
West Virginia Veterans | March 2–6, 2016 | 600 | ± 3.9% | 36% | 20% | 16% | 28% |
MetroNews | February 11–16, 2016 | 208 | ± 4.9% | 32% | 25% | 23% | 21% |
Global Strategy Group^ | December 1–3, 2015 | 350 | ± 5.2% | 39% | 13% | 19% | 21% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Jim Justice | 132,704 | 51.39% | |
Democratic | Booth Goodwin | 65,416 | 25.32% | |
Democratic | Jeff Kessler | 60,230 | 23.31% | |
Total votes | 258,350 | 100.00% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Bill Cole | David McKinley | Patrick Morrisey | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-07-09 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 242 | ± 6.3% | 15% | 31% | 25% | 29% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Bill Cole | 161,127 | 100.00% | |
Total votes | 161,127 | 100.00% |
Individuals
Organizations
Source | Ranking | As of |
---|---|---|
The Cook Political Report [44] | Tossup | August 12, 2016 |
Daily Kos [45] | Tossup | November 8, 2016 |
Rothenberg Political Report [46] | Tilt D | November 3, 2016 |
Sabato's Crystal Ball [47] | Lean D | November 7, 2016 |
Real Clear Politics [48] | Lean R (flip) | November 1, 2016 |
Governing [49] | Tossup | October 27, 2016 |
This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines.(August 2016) |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jim Justice (D) | Bill Cole (R) | Charlotte Pritt (M) | David Moran (L) | Phil Hudok (C) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SurveyMonkey | November 1–7, 2016 | 472 | ± 4.6% | 36% | 45% | 13% | — | — | 6% |
SurveyMonkey | October 31–November 6, 2016 | 443 | ± 4.6% | 37% | 43% | 13% | — | — | 7% |
SurveyMonkey | October 28–November 3, 2016 | 386 | ± 4.6% | 40% | 42% | 12% | — | — | 6% |
SurveyMonkey | October 27–November 2, 2016 | 330 | ± 4.6% | 39% | 44% | 10% | — | — | 7% |
SurveyMonkey | October 26–November 1, 2016 | 318 | ± 4.6% | 42% | 41% | 12% | — | — | 5% |
SurveyMonkey | October 25–31, 2016 | 321 | ± 4.6% | 42% | 43% | 13% | — | — | 2% |
MetroNews | October 12–17, 2016 | 408 | ± 4.9% | 44% | 33% | 8% | 5% | — | 9% |
Global Strategy Group | October 11–13, 2016 | N/A | ± 4.0% | 44% | 34% | 8% | 2% | — | 12% |
NMB Research | October 8–10, 2016 | N/A | ± 4.4% | 39% | 39% | 5% | 2% | 1% | 12% |
Garin-Hart-Yang | September 13–17, 2016 | 500 | ± 5.0% | 46% | 33% | 7% | 4% | — | 10% |
Just Win Strategies→ | September 8–10, 2016 | 600 | ± 4.0% | 44% | 42% | 3% | 2% | 2% | 7% |
R.L. Repass & Partners/MetroNews | August 9–28, 2016 | 435 | ± 4.7% | 46% | 32% | 8% | 5% | — | 9% |
Global Strategy Group | August 1–3, 2016 | 419 | ± 4.8% | 47% | 37% | — | — | — | 15% |
Public Policy Polling | April 29–May 1, 2016 | 1,201 | ± 2.8% | 41% | 35% | — | — | — | 24% |
MetroNews | April 22–May 2, 2016 | 596 | ± 4.0% | 52% | 34% | — | — | — | 14% |
Orion Strategies | February 20–21, 2016 | 306 | ± 5.6% | 37% | 33% | — | — | — | 30% |
MetroNews | February 11–16, 2016 | 411 | ± 4.9% | 49% | 39% | — | — | — | 12% |
Orion Strategies | August 24–25, 2015 | 406 | ± 4.9% | 34% | 31% | — | — | — | 35% |
→ Indicates an internal poll conducted by the West Virginia Republican Party for Bill Cole.
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Booth Goodwin (D) | David McKinley (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 35% | 40% | 25% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Booth Goodwin (D) | Patrick Morrisey (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 36% | 36% | 28% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Booth Goodwin (D) | Bill Cole (R) | Other | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
MetroNews | April 22–May 2, 2016 | 596 | ± 4.0% | 47% | 39% | — | 14% |
Public Policy Polling | April 29–May 1, 2016 | 1,201 | ± 2.8% | 33% | 39% | — | 28% |
Orion Strategies | February 20–21, 2016 | 306 | ± 5.6% | 33% | 36% | — | 31% |
MetroNews | February 11–16, 2016 | 411 | ± 4.9% | 43% | 44% | — | 14% |
Harper Polling | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 35% | 37% | — | 27% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jeff Kessler (D) | David McKinley (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 32% | 42% | 26% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jeff Kessler (D) | Patrick Morrisey (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 35% | 38% | 27% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jeff Kessler (D) | Bill Cole (R) | Other | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
MetroNews | April 22–May 2, 2016 | 596 | ± 4.0% | 45% | 39% | — | 16% |
Public Policy Polling | April 29–May 1, 2016 | 1,201 | ± 2.8% | 30% | 40% | — | 30% |
Orion Strategies | February 20–21, 2016 | 306 | ± 5.6% | 30% | 40% | — | 30% |
MetroNews | February 11–16, 2016 | 411 | ± 4.9% | 40% | 45% | — | 15% |
Orion Strategies | August 24–25, 2015 | 406 | ± 4.9% | 26% | 37% | — | 37% |
Harper Polling | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 34% | 38% | — | 28% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Joe Manchin (D) | Bill Cole (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 54% | 32% | 14% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Joe Manchin (D) | David McKinley (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 52% | 35% | 12% |
Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Joe Manchin (D) | Patrick Morrisey (R) | Undecided |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harper Polling Archived 2015-04-14 at the Wayback Machine | April 9–11, 2015 | 702 | ± 3.7% | 58% | 29% | 13% |
Global Strategy Group* | March 15–18, 2015 | 600 | ± 4.0% | 60% | 30% | 10% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Jim Justice | 350,408 | 49.09% | −1.40% | |
Republican | Bill Cole | 301,987 | 42.30% | −3.35% | |
Mountain | Charlotte Pritt | 42,068 | 5.89% | +3.36% | |
Libertarian | David Moran | 15,354 | 2.15% | +0.81% | |
Constitution | Phil Hudok | 4,041 | 0.57% | N/A | |
Total votes | 713,858 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
Democratic hold |
Justice won 2 of 3 congressional districts, both of which elected Republicans. [51]
District | Justice | Cole | Pritt | Representative |
---|---|---|---|---|
1st | 45.2% | 45.4% | 6% | David McKinley |
2nd | 48% | 43% | 7% | Alex Mooney |
3rd | 55% | 38% | 5% | Evan Jenkins |
Earl Ray Tomblin is an American politician who served as the 35th governor of West Virginia from 2011 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the West Virginia Senate from 1980 to 2011 and as president of the West Virginia Senate from 1995 to 2011. Tomblin became acting governor in November 2010 following Joe Manchin's election to the U.S. Senate. He won a special election in October 2011 to fill the unexpired term ending on January 14, 2013, and was elected to a full term as governor in November 2012.
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.
Charlotte Jean Pritt is an American educator, businesswoman, and politician in the U.S. state of West Virginia. From 1984 to 1988, she served in the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing Kanawha County. From 1988 to 1992, she served in the West Virginia State Senate. She ran unsuccessfully for West Virginia governor in 1992, 1996 and 2016 and for West Virginia Secretary of State in 2000.
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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.
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