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W.Va. House to seat first black Republican woman

Charleston Daily Mail photo courtesy of Jill Upson Delegate Jill Upson, R-Jefferson, said the 2010 death of her teenage daughter inspired her to enter public service.
Charleston Daily Mail photo courtesy of Jill Upson
Delegate Jill Upson, R-Jefferson, said the 2010 death of her teenage daughter inspired her to enter public service.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Jefferson County Delegate-elect Jill Upson knows all too well we’re not promised tomorrow.

After her teenage daughter died in a car crash in 2010, Upson looked back on her life and realized something.

“She didn’t waste a single minute,” Upson said.

“Our time here is limited. Losing her and looking at the way she lived her life motivated me to step into public office.”

Upson, 48, was elected to the House of Delegates in November, besting Democratic incumbent Tiffany Lawrence by 12 points. In doing so, Upson became the first black Republican woman elected to the House. She said her election speaks to the dissatisfaction voters feel with the status quo.

“The fact that I won by 12 points in a district that’s something like .06 percent black shows that West Virginians are rejecting all of the divisive conversation you hear a lot of on social media and TV and network news,” she said. “I’m proud of my state. I’m proud of the fact that West Virginians care more about ideas and issues than race. I couldn’t be happier to be a West Virginian.”

Upson is a West Virginian by choice.

Originally from California, she married a Navy man, and the family, including a now 24-year-old son, moved around because of his job. They settled in West Virginia in 2003.

“I fell in love with the area and thought it was a great place to raise my kids,” she said. “We plan to stay here and retire, obviously.”

 Upson said she doesn’t necessarily view her election as historical, but she campaigned with the hope her party would make significant gains in the state Legislature.

“I wanted to show voters they had an alternative…

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