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2020 West Virginia gubernatorial election

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Nominee Jim Justice Ben Salango Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 497,944 237,024 Percentage 63.49% 30.22%

County results Congressional district results Precinct resultsJustice:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Salango:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

Governor before election Jim Justice Republican Elected Governor Jim Justice Republican

Elections in West Virginia
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v t e

The 2020 West Virginia gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the governor of West Virginia, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

Incumbent Governor Jim Justice announced his 2020 re-election campaign on January 7, 2019. Justice was elected in 2016 as a Democrat, but later switched back to the Republican Party at a campaign rally with Donald Trump. Justice won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic Kanawha County commissioner Ben Salango. Justice's re-election made him the first Republican to be elected governor of West Virginia since Cecil Underwood in 1996. Additionally, Justice became the first incumbent Republican governor to win re-election since Arch A. Moore Jr. in 1972, as well as the first Republican to carry all counties in West Virginia. However, Justice performed worse than Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who outperformed Justice by 5.13 percentage points. Additionally, Salango slightly outperformed Biden by 0.53 percentage points. Justice's 33% margin is the largest margin for a Republican in West Virginia history

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Jim Justice, incumbent governor

Eliminated in primary

• Shelby Jean Fitzhugh, retiree
• Michael Folk, former state delegate
• Brooke Lunsford, insurance agent
• Chuck Sheedy, U.S. Army veteran
• Doug Six, surveyor
• Woody Thrasher, former West Virginia Secretary of Commerce (2017–2018)

Declined

• David McKinley, incumbent U.S. Representative for West Virginia's 1st congressional district (running for re-election)
• Mac Warner, Secretary of State of West Virginia (running for re-election)

Polling

Results

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Ben Salango, Kanawha County commissioner

Eliminated in primary

• Douglas Hughes, environmental permit writer for West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
• Jody Murphy, businessman
• Stephen Smith, community organizer
• Ron Stollings, state senator

Declined

• Booth Goodwin, former United States Attorney and candidate for Governor of West Virginia in 2016
• Joe Manchin, incumbent U.S. Senator and former Governor of West Virginia

Endorsements

Federal politicians

• Joe Manchin, U.S. Senator (WV)

Individuals

• Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Allen E. Tackett, former West Virginia National Guard adjutant general (1995-2010)

Organizations

• West Virginia AFL–CIO

Newspapers

• Charleston Gazette-Mail

Federal politicians

• Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator (MA)

Organizations

• People for the American Way Next Up
• Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic
• Progressive Change Campaign Committee
• Rise Up West Virginia
• Working Families Party

State legislators

• Corey Palumbo, West Virginia State Senator from the 17th and 8th districts (2009-present)

Polling

Results

Other candidates

Mountain Party

The Mountain Party received over 5% of the vote in 2016 with former State Senator and Delegate Charlotte Pritt as the party's gubernatorial nominee. The party nominates its candidate for governor by convention per its bylaws.

Nominee

• Daniel Lutz, Eastern Panhandle Conservation District Supervisor representing Jefferson County, and commissioned U.S. Air Force veteran

Endorsements

Organizations

• Eastern Panhandle Green Coalition, environmental organization
• Jefferson County Vision, sustainability organization

Libertarian Party

Nominee

• Erika Kolenich, trial attorney

Write-ins

The following candidates were certified write-in candidates.

Declared

• Quintin Gerard Caldwell
• Michael Folk, former State Delegate (sought the nomination of the Republican Party)
• Kimberly Gross
• Mitch Roberts
• Marshall Wilson, State Delegate (Independent)

General election

Predictions

Endorsements

Federal politicians

• Joe Manchin, U.S. Senator (WV)

Individuals

• Jennifer Garner, actress
• Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Allen E. Tackett, former West Virginia National Guard adjutant general (1995-2010)

Organizations

• United Mine Workers of America
• West Virginia AFL–CIO

Newspapers

• Charleston Gazette-Mail

Polling

Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. Updates on reimplementing the Graph extension, which will be known as the Chart extension, can be found on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.

Jim Justice vs. Joe Manchin

Results

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Cabell (largest city: Huntington)
• Calhoun (largest city: Grantsville)
• Clay (largest city: Clay)
• Gilmer (largest city: Glenville)
• Greenbrier (largest city: Lewisburg)
• Jackson (largest city: Ravenswood)
• Marshall (largest city: Moundsville)
• Mason (largest city: Point Pleasant)
• Monongalia (largest city: Morgantown)
• Monroe (largest city: Peterstown)
• Nicholas (largest city: Summersville)
• Ohio (largest city: Wheeling)
• Pendleton (largest city: Franklin)
• Pleasants (largest city: St. Marys)
• Pocahontas (largest city: Marlinton)
• Raleigh (largest city: Beckley)
• Randolph (largest city: Elkins)
• Roane (largest city: Spencer)
• Summers (largest city: Hinton)
• Wayne (largest city: Kenova)
• Wetzel (largest city: New Martinsville)
• Harrison (largest city: Clarksburg)
• Kanawha (largest city: Charleston)
• Lincoln (largest city: Hamlin)
• Wyoming (largest city: Mullens)
• Brooke (largest borough: Wellsburg)
• Fayette (largest city: Fayetteville)
• Logan (largest borough: Logan)
• Mingo (largest borough: Williamson)
• Boone (largest city: Madison)
• Braxton (largest town: Sutton)
• Marion (largest city: Fairmont)
• McDowell (largest city: Welch)
• Webster (largest town: Webster Springs)
• Wirt (largest municipality: Elizabeth)
• Putnam (largest municipality: Hurricane)
• Wood (largest municipality: Parkersburg)

By congressional district

Justice won all three congressional districts.

Notes

1. ^ Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
2. Undecided with 12%, Doug Six with 2.0%; Shelby Fitzhugh with 1.8%; Brooke Lunsford with 1.2%; Chuck Sheedy with 0.6%
3. Not available
4. Undecided with 29%, Jody Murphy with 2.9%; Douglas Hughes with 1.3%
5. Undecided with 42%, Cecil Silva with 1.8%; Jody Murphy with 1.4%; Edwin Vanover with 0.5%
6. Additional data sourced from FiveThirtyEight
7. Poll sponsored by Justice's campaign.
8. Split between Danny Lutz (M) and Erika Kolenich (L)

Partisan clients

1. Poll conducted for Woody Thrasher
2. Poll sponsored by Woody Thrasher's campaign
3. Poll sponsored by Woody Thrasher's campaign
4. Poll sponsored by West Virginia First, which opposed Jim Justice's reelection bid prior to this poll's sampling period.

References

1. Brown, Haley (January 7, 2019). "Governor Justice announces 2020 campaign". WVVA. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
2. "West Virginia Undergoing Political, Generational Change". New York Times. August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
3. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/ContainerHistory.html?ContainerID=294
4. Zuckerman, Jake (January 7, 2019). "Gov. Jim Justice announces re-election bid". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
5. "Campaign Update: Shelby Jean Fitzhugh on West Virginia's needs". West Virginia Press. February 14, 2020.
6. "Former Delegate Mike Folk announces run for W.Va. governor". Associated Press. February 5, 2019. Retrieved February 5, 2019.
7. ^ Thomas, Alex (January 29, 2020). "Governor, US Senate seats up in this year's election".
8. ^ "Financial Disclosure - Governor 2020 Election". West Virginia Secretary of State.
9. Young, Charles (April 16, 2019). "Woody Thrasher to run for governor, hopes to unseat Justice in WV's 2020 election". WV News. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
10. ^ Adams, Steven Allen (December 3, 2018). "Tis the election season again". The Journal. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
11. Kabler, Phil (October 4, 2018). "BRIM adopts statement of support for pending settlements of Mac Warner lawsuits". Charleston Gazette-Mail.
12. Triton Polling & Research/WMOV
13. WPA Intelligence (R)
14. Research America Inc.
15. Public Opinion Strategies (R)
16. Research America Inc.
17. ^ WPA Intelligence
18. "GOVERNOR - REP". Secretary of State of West Virginia. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
19. Morris, Jeff (October 4, 2019). "Kanawha Commissioner Ben Salango to run for governor". WCHS.
20. "Douglas Hughes, Democratic candidate for W.Va. governor". WCHS - ABC 8. April 3, 2020. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
21. Mistich, David (November 27, 2018). "West Virginia Community Organizer Jumps in 2020 Gubernatorial Race". WV Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on September 29, 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
22. Jenkins, Jeff (September 23, 2019). "Stollings to run for governor". WV MetroNews. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
23. Levine, Marianne (September 3, 2019). "Joe Manchin won't run for governor of West Virginia". Politico. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
24. ^ WVMetroNews (March 18, 2020). "Manchin endorses Salango in gubernatorial contest". WV MetroNews. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
25. ^ "Endorsements | Ben Salango for Governor". Ben Salango. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
26. ^ "2020 Primary Election Cope Endorsements". West Virginia AFL-CIO.
27. ^ "Ben Salango for Governor | West Virginia". Ben Salango. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
28. McElhinny, Brad (September 9, 2019). "Elizabeth Warren pitches an early endorsement for Stephen Smith's campaign for governor". WV MetroNews. "I'm proud to endorse Stephen's bid for governor, and his team's efforts to run candidates up and down the ballot," Warren stated.
29. "Next Up Endorses Young Progressive Candidates". People for the American Way. Archived from the original on February 11, 2020. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
30. "Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic Announces Election Endorsements, including Stephen Smith for Governor". Planned Parenthood Action Fund (PlannedParenthoodAction.org).
31. "Join the Bold Progressive Movement!". Progressive Change Campaign Committee (BoldProgressives.org).
32. "2020 Endorsements". Rise Up West Virginia. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
33. "Join us Sunday for the next WFP Assembly". Working Families Party. January 24, 2020. Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
34. Pace, Bailey (March 18, 2020). "Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Dr. Stollings, criticizes Manchin for endorsement of opponent during COVID-19 crisis". WVVA. Archived from the original on May 18, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
35. Triton Polling & Research/WMOV
36. Research America/MetroNews
37. "GOVERNOR - DEM". Secretary of State of West Virginia. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
38. "Constitution and Bylaws of the West Virginia Mountain Party". Mountain Party. November 11, 2019. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
39. "Mountain Party Nominates Danny Lutz For Governor". Mountain Party. June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
40. ^ "2020 General Election Guide" (PDF). Retrieved October 22, 2020.
41. "List Of Candidates For 11/03/2020 -- GENERAL 2020" (PDF). West Virginia Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
42. "Delegate Marshall Wilson running for Governor of West Virginia". WDVM-TV. June 12, 2020. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
43. "2020 Governor Race Ratings for October 23, 2020". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
44. "2020 Gubernatorial Ratings". insideelections.com. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
45. "2020 Gubernatorial race ratings". Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball. November 2, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
46. "We rated every gubernatorial race in 2020. Here's who we think will win". Politico. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
47. "2020 Governor Race Ratings". Daily Kos. June 1, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
48. "2020 Governor Races". RealClearPolitics. June 13, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
49. "2020 Gubernatorial Elections Map". 270towin.
50. "Ben Salango hosts Facebook Live with Jennifer Garner to discuss issues in W.Va". WSAZ News. September 17, 2020.
51. "Ben Salango on Twitter: I am honored to have the endorsement of Cecil Roberts and the @MineWorkers". Twitter.
52. Triton Polling and Research
53. Research America Inc.
54. Triton Polling & Research
55. Strategies Unlimited
56. Mark Blankenship Enterprises (R)
57. Research America/MetroNews
58. "November 3, 2020 General Election - Official Results". West Virginia State - Clarity Elections. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
59. "2020 General Election Write-in Candidate Results" (PDF). West Virginia Secretary of State. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
60. "Our Campaigns - WV Governor Race - Nov 03, 2020". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved August 18, 2024.

External links

• Government Documents Round Table of the American Library Association, "West Virginia", Voting & Elections Toolkits
• "West Virginia: Election Tools, Deadlines, Dates, Rules, and Links", Vote.org, Oakland, CA
• "League of Women Voters of West Virginia". (state affiliate of the U.S. League of Women Voters)
• West Virginia at Ballotpedia

Official campaign websites

• Jim Justice (R) for Governor Archived 2019-10-29 at the Wayback Machine
• Ben Salango (D) for Governor
• Daniel Lutz (M) for Governor
• Erika Kolenich (L) for Governor
• Michael Folk (I) for Governor
• S. Marshall Wilson (I) for Governor

v t e West Virginia gubernatorial elections
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