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Zach Shrewsbury | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 10, 1991 Ripley, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | North Seattle College University of Washington, Bothell |
Zachary Shrewsbury (born February 10, 1991) is a native West Virginian, a United States Marine Corps veteran, a community organizer and political activist. He was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the 2024 United States Senate election in West Virginia. [1] [2] [3]
Shrewsbury was born February 10, 1991. He is native of West Virginia and comes from a working-class family. His grandfather was a coal miner, his father worked in sales, and his mother was a homemaker. [4] [5] He grew up on a farm in Ripley and graduated from James Monroe High School in Monroe County. He has said "College was unaffordable, and the choice was between the mines and a minimum-wage job, and I chose the military." He has lived in Fayetteville; he lives in Princeton. [6]
Shrewsbury served five years (2010 to 2015) in the United States Marine Corps [4] during which he guarded the perimeter at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, and was deployed to Japan, Malaysia and South Korea. [1]
After his discharge, he moved to Seattle, where he began his activism, but chose to return to West Virginia, despite the lack of prosperity he had seen in the U.S. and abroad. [1] He joined Common Defense [7] to rally fellow veterans against what that group calls “Trump’s corrupt agenda of hate” and “the entrenched power of greedy billionaires who have rigged our economy.” Shrewsbury has been an organizer for Citizen Action and the New Jobs Coalition.[ citation needed ]
He is organizer of Bluejay Rising and the Blue Feather Initiative which provided aid in response to the severe flooding of southern West Virginia in February 2025.
| Campaign | 2024 U.S. Senate election in West Virginia |
|---|---|
| Candidate | Zach Shrewsbury |
| Affiliation | Democratic |
| Launched | October 15, 2023 |
| Headquarters | Princeton |
| Receipts | US$75,576 [8] |
| Website | |
| https://www.shrewsburyforsenate.com | |
On November 10, 2023, Senator Joe Manchin announced he would not seek re-election as Senator from West Virginia in the United States Senate. [9] [10]
Shrewsbury launched his candidacy on October 15, 2023, in Charles Town at the Jefferson County Courthouse where state authorities convicted abolitionist John Brown. [1] and on January 17, 2024, he officially filed paperwork with the West Virginia Secretary of State. [11] The primary election took place on May 14, 2024. [12]
Shrewsbury has said there is not "enough working-class representation in our government." [13] He supports the right to unionize and strong labor protections, universal healthcare, environmental justice, energy independence with an emphasis on renewables manufacturing, racial justice, progressive tax policies, abortion rights, as well as support for veterans and LGBTQ individuals. [14]
Responding to red-baiting, he told The Guardian : "If caring about working-class people, caring about people having bodily autonomy, water rights, workers' rights, makes you a socialist, then call me whatever you want. Doesn't bother me." [1]
Shrewsbury received the support of the Progressive Democrats of America. [15]
He finished second in the Democratic primary, behind Glenn Elliott but ahead of Don Blankenship, receiving 36.1% of the vote.
Shrewsbury is seeking the Democratic nomination in the 2026 United States Senate election in West Virginia. [16]
Of the incumbent Senator and his potential Republican opponent Shelley Moore Capito, Shrewsbury wrote: "For decades, Shelley Moore Capito and her family have ruled West Virginia like feudal lords passing power down like heirlooms while our towns crumbled and our people suffered. It’s time for it to end." [17]
He was the lead speaker during Senator Bernie Sander's 'Fighting Oligarchy' tour of West Virginia in August 2025 and played a pivotal role in bringing the tour to the state. [18]
In August of 2025, he was accused of inappropriate behavior with a woman whom he employed once in July of 2025 as a licensed massage therapist for an ongoing sciatica issue. After the massage ended and the therapist left the premises, she reached out to a mutual male friend who was also present throughout the massage and expressed that Shrewsbury made her feel uncomfortable. Upon hearing this, he immediately apologized to her. She thanked him for and accepted his apology. Approximately one month later, the massage therapist alleged publicly via social media that he had repeatedly groped her thigh during the massage. He denied this but did admit to a single reflexive grab of her pants leg due to pain caused during the massage. [19] [20] [21]