West Virginia State Senate elections, 2012
From Ballotpedia - Reading time: 6 min
Elections for the office of West Virginia State Senate were held in West Virginia on November 6, 2012. A total of 17 seats were up for election.
The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in these elections was January 28, 2012. The primary Election Day was May 8, 2012.
Incumbents retiring[edit]
| Name | Party | Current office |
|---|---|---|
| Dan Foster |  Democratic |
Senate District 17 |
| John Fanning | Democratic |
Senate District 6 |
| Karen Facemyer |  Republican |
Senate District 4 |
Majority control[edit]
- See also: Partisan composition of state senates
Heading into the November 6 election, the Democratic Party held the majority in the West Virginia State Senate:
| West Virginia State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 5, 2012 | After the 2012 Election | |
| Democratic Party | 28 | 24 | |
| Republican Party | 6 | 10 | |
| Total | 34 | 34 | |
Campaign contributions[edit]
This chart shows how many candidates ran for West Virginia State Senate in the past four elections and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in state senate races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests. All figures come from Follow The Money.[1]
| Year | Number of candidates | Total contributions |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 51 | $2,663,291 |
| 2008 | 41 | $2,445,385 |
| 2006 | 45 | $3,412,237 |
| 2004 | 44 | $2,543,094 |
| 2002 | 49 | $3,209,760 |
In 2010, the candidates for state senate raised a total of $2,663,291 in campaign contributions. The top 10 donors were:[2]
| Donor | Amount |
|---|---|
| Chafin, H Truman | $303,000 |
| Smith, Greg (Hootie) | $227,570 |
| Barnes, John | $88,451 |
| Greathouse, Dan | $50,834 |
| Contractors Association of West Virginia | $26,300 |
| Tucker, Gregory A | $25,200 |
| West Virginia Bankers Association | $25,000 |
| West Virginia Chamber of Commerce | $21,500 |
| West Virginia Building & Construction Trades Council | $18,000 |
| Frich, Cindy | $17,854 |
Impact of redistricting[edit]
- See also: Redistricting in West Virginia
A new Senate map was passed by the Senate on August 3, 2011, concurred with by the House on August 5, and signed by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin (D) on August 18. Though the House of Delegates faced a trickier situation in that its first map was vetoed by Tomblin over errors, and had debate centered around the elimination of multi-member districts, the Senate map was largely held over from the previous one. However, a lawsuit was brought, charging that there was a lack of equality of apportionment, compactness of districts, and minimization of division of counties.[3]
Qualifications[edit]
Section 13 of Article 6 of the West Virginia Constitution states, "No person holding any other lucrative office or employment under this state, the United States, or any foreign government; no member of Congress; and no person who is sheriff, constable, or clerk of any court of record, shall be eligible to a seat in the Legislature."
List of candidates[edit]
District 1[edit]
May 8 Democratic primary:
- Jack Yost: 12,261
- Incumbent Yost first assumed office in 2008.
- Jack Yost: 12,261
May 8 GOP primary:
- Pat McGeehan: 5,487
- Pat McGeehan: 5,487
November 6 General election candidates:
- Jack Yost: 11,760
- Pat McGeehan: 9,146
District 2[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Jeffrey V. Kessler: 11,357 - Incumbent Kessler first assumed office in 1997.
- Jeffrey V. Kessler: 11,357
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Jeffrey V. Kessler: 16,614
District 3[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- No candidates filed.
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Donna J. Boley: 8,113 - Incumbent Boley first assumed office in 1985.
- Donna J. Boley: 8,113
- Note: Frank Deem was included on the initial official candidate list, but was later removed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Donna J. Boley: 3,736
District 4[edit]
Incumbent Republican Karen Facemyer did not seek re-election.
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Michael "Mike" Bright: 6,085
- Marla Dee Ingels: 2,936
- Michael "Mike" Bright: 6,085
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Mitch B. Carmichael: 8,432
- Mitch B. Carmichael: 8,432
November 6 General election candidates:
- Michael "Mike" Bright: 13,403
- Mitch B. Carmichael: 16,981
District 5[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Robert H. "Bob" Plymale: 8,263 - Incumbent Plymale first assumed office in 1992.
- Robert H. "Bob" Plymale: 8,263
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Robert H. "Bob" Plymale: 23,417
District 6[edit]
Incumbent Democrat John Fanning did not seek re-election.
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Michael "Mike" Mitchem: 6,216
- Mark Wills: 6,768 - Incumbent Wills first assumed office in 2010.
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Bill Cole: 2,757
- Bill Cole: 2,757
November 6 General election candidates:
- Mark Wills: 9,034
- Bill Cole: 11,975
District 7[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Sammy D. Dalton: 6,428
- Art Kirkendoll: 11,529 - Incumbent Kirkendoll first assumed office in 2011.
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Art Kirkendoll: 6,629
District 8[edit]
Incumbent Democrat Corey Palumbo won re-election in District 17.
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Jennifer Scragg Karr: 3,307
- Joshua R. Martin: 3,928
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Chris Walters: 4,261
- Chris Walters: 4,261
November 6 General election candidates:
- Joshua R. Martin: 17,039
- Chris Walters: 19,123
District 9[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Richard Browning: 5,086 - Incumbent Browning first assumed office in 2008.
- Daniel Hall: 5,303 -
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Epp E. Cline: 3,545
- Epp E. Cline: 3,545
November 6 General election candidates:
- Daniel Hall: 18,004
- Epp E. Cline: 15,595
District 10[edit]
Incumbent Democrat Mark Wills ran for re-election in District 6.
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- William R. Laird, IV: 11,264 - Incumbent Laird first assumed office in 2008.
- William R. Laird, IV: 11,264
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- William R. Laird, IV: 20,247
District 11[edit]
Incumbent Democrat William R. Laird IV won re-election in District 10.
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Margaret Kerr Beckwith: 7,622
- Paul "P.J." Louk: 5,347
- Margaret Kerr Beckwith: 7,622
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Clark Barnes: 7,486 - Incumbent Barnes first assumed office in 2004.
- Clark Barnes: 7,486
November 6 General election candidates:
- Margaret Kerr Beckwith: 9,454
- Clark Barnes: 20,045
District 12[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Doug Facemire: 12,770 - Incumbent Facemire first assumed office in 2008.
- Doug Facemire: 12,770
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Doug Facemire: 11,277
District 13[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Roman W. Prezioso, Jr.: 10,559 - Incumbent Prezioso first assumed office in 1996.
- Roman W. Prezioso, Jr.: 10,559
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Casey Mayer: 3,480
- Casey Mayer: 3,480
November 6 General election candidates:
- Roman W. Prezioso, Jr.: 11,495
- Casey Mayer: 5,623
District 14[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Bob Williams: 9,508 - Incumbent Williams first assumed office in 2008.
- Bob Williams: 9,508
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Bob Williams: 18,818
District 15[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- No candidates filed.
- May 8 GOP primary:
- Craig P. Blair: 7,046
- Craig P. Blair: 7,046
November 6 General election candidates:
- Craig P. Blair: 28,766
Daniel Litten: 6,847
District 16[edit]
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Herb Snyder: 5,051 - Incumbent Snyder first assumed office in 2008.
- Herb Snyder: 5,051
- May 8 GOP primary:
- James Kenneth Ruland: 4,163
- James Kenneth Ruland: 4,163
November 6 General election candidates:
- Herb Snyder: 20,764
- James Kenneth Ruland: 17,763
District 17[edit]
Incumbent Democrat Dan Foster did not seek re-election.
- May 8 Democratic primary:
- Corey Palumbo: 8,581 - Incumbent Palumbo first assumed office in 2008.
- Corey Palumbo: 8,581
- May 8 GOP primary:
- No candidates filed.
November 6 General election candidates:
- Corey Palumbo: 28,384
External links[edit]
- Official primary results
- West Virginia Secretary of State - 2012 Candidate Listing By Office
- Official general election results
See also[edit]
Footnotes[edit]
EncycloReader
is supported by the 
KSF