By Beth Sergent and Mike Tony, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The front-runners in the race for U.S. Senate have crisscrossed West Virginia to meet voters and explain where they want to take West Virginia while representing them in Washington, D.C., in the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va.
Voters in all 55 counties have no doubt had an opportunity to see Gov. Jim Justice, 73, R-Lewisburg, show up at events in their town in his black SUV with his English bulldog Babydog in the passenger seat, or had the former Mayor of Wheeling, Glenn Elliott, 52, D-Wheeling, knock on their door to introduce himself as part of his statewide listening tour.
The nominees’ priorities
Elliott:
Elliott said while on his “The Place Where We Belong” listening tour that he’d been talking to all voters, regardless of their political affiliation. He’s also hosted town halls, including a stop in Charleston in August.
Prior to that Kanawha County visit, Elliott spoke about addressing the needs of the state’s aging population and keeping younger West Virginians from leaving.
“We have to be very cognizant of the needs of our senior population, that includes protecting Social Security and Medicare,” he said. “We also have to be thinking a lot about, how are we going to keep our younger people from leaving? Which has been the story of West Virginia in the modern day.”
Elliott also said growing the state’s cities should be a priority, and improving connectivity will play a role in growing the population.
“If we want to attract young people, we have to improve our state’s connectivity both with cell service and broadband. There are significant gaps for both,” he said.