By Mike Tony, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Delegate. Senator. Secretary of state. Governor.
Joe Manchin ascended through all those state-level positions over nearly three decades en route to the summit of his political powers as a U.S. senator.
But did Manchin lift his fellow West Virginians up toward the mountaintop with him?
As Manchin’s time in the Senate expires this week after he chose not to run for a third full term, West Virginia’s position at or near the bottom of state quality-of-life rankings persists.
West Virginia placed 50th in infrastructure and 48th in economy, education and health care in U.S. News & World Report’s state rankings for 2024.
