West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) and US Senator Joe Manchin (L), Democrat of West Virginia, attend a roundtable discussion on the opioid epidemic with local and state officials on the Cabell-Huntington Health Department in Huntington, West Virginia, July 8, 2019.
Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
West Virginia’s Republican governor, Jim Justice, filed official paperwork to kick off a 2024 campaign for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by incumbent Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin.
A senior source near the governor confirmed that Justice’s campaign filed with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday.
The long-anticipated move by Justice, who switched parties in 2017 and has since turn into one in all the red state’s most popular politicians, could further imperil Democrats’ efforts to maintain their slim majority within the Senate.
Manchin, one in all the chamber’s most conservative Democrats, has said he won’t resolve whether to run for reelection until closer to the tip of the 12 months, no matter Justice’s plans. His seat is taken into account probably the most winnable for Republicans in next 12 months’s election.
“I’m laser focused on doing the job West Virginians elected me to do – lowering healthcare costs, protecting Social Security and Medicare, shoring up American energy security and getting our fiscal house so as,” Manchin said in an announcement Thursday morning following news of Justice’s Senate bid.
“But make no mistake, I’ll win any race I enter,” Manchin added.
If Manchin decides to not run for a 3rd term, Democrats are widely expected to lose the seat to whichever Republican nominee emerges from West Virginia’s Senate primary. Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.V. who was backed by former President Donald Trump in his most up-to-date House election, has already jumped into the Senate race.
Mooney’s campaign manager said Monday that it will be a “terrible idea” for Justice to run for the Senate, calling the governor a “Democrat in sheep’s clothing.”
Justice stood alongside Trump when he announced that he would switch to the Republican Party. A Trump campaign spokesman didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.
Victory is hardly a guarantee for Manchin if he does attempt to hold onto the seat. Despite his incumbent advantage, his hefty war chest and his fame for breaking with fellow Democrats, Manchin’s party affiliation may too great an obstacle to beat in a state that voted for Trump by nearly 40 points in 2020.
Manchin won his last Senate race in 2018 by just three percentage points. Together with his seat under threat, Manchin has appeared increasingly critical of President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats.
The governor, who’s term limited as governor, had been strongly encouraged to run for Senate by top Republicans, including NRSC Chair Sen. Steve Daines of Montana and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
Justice, reportedly his state’s wealthiest resident, is about to announce his campaign at 5 p.m. ET at The Greenbrier, his luxury hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.
That is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
