GLENVILLE, W.VA. — The crucial 2014 General Election is impending, in fact, it is to take place on Tues., Nov. 4 — less than three weeks away. Are you ready for it?
This election is important because we West Virginia voters will be determining what direction our state and nation may be going in future years. The most important election is that for our U.S. Senate seat — a post being vacated by the retiring Jay Rockefeller (a Democrat). For 30 years, he has fought hard in Congress for the common people, the disenfranchised and those without a voice. He’s been inspirational on the Women & Children’s Committee in the U.S. Senate, standing up for the CHIPs program for the poor when former Republican President George Bush tried to slash its funding. In addition, he backs the Coal Industry against our current president, who is shortsighted on the value of our state’s primary industry in keeping the nation’s lights on. In general, Rockefeller, like the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV), has kept the interests of the Middle Class, working people and the poor uppermost in his thoughts when voting on U.S. Senate bills related to those issues.
Natalie Tennant (Democrat), our current Secretary of State, seems to embrace the same Rockefeller tradition of justice, fairness and charity toward those needing them the most than does her Republican opponent, Shelley Moore Capito (Republican), the state’s current 2nd District Congresswoman. Capito’s voted against the raising of the minimum wage and for other Big Business issues before Congress, which places her in the opposite camp. Both Tennant and Capito are seeking to replace Rockefeller in the U.S. Senate by virtue of this upcoming Nov. 4 General Election, and it’s up to we voters to decide who this new Senator will be. Most importantly, Tennant has strong positive feelings for Glenville and Glenville State College, where her preschool education began and her mother taught; she’d help the college.
By the way, this publisher did not see the Tues. evening, Oct. 7 televised debate between these two senatorial candidates, so I asked on Facebook, who won it. No one replied to my request for an answer. That’s frightening to me, because it either means that no one in my circle of friends took the time to watch it or people just don’t care about elections anymore. Additionally, some folks might be timid about expressing their political opinions these days for fear of being labeled “politically incorrect.” Nevertheless, I did check the Facebook pages of both candidates, and was favorably impressed by Mrs. Tennant’s page, which went into her positions on the major issues affecting the state, nation and common people: creating jobs, strengthening the economy, aiding the Middle Class and poor, and bolstering the women and children’s programs. Conversely, Congresswoman Capito’s emphasized her trips to big businesses and talks with wealthy executives. Also, her Facebook Friends were complaining that during the debate, she didn’t look at the people when speaking and wasn’t assertive enough. As a result, I surmised that on the issues, Mrs. Tennant won the debate, thereby giving a boost to her campaign. Right now, the polls show Mrs. Capito being in the lead, but the debate may have narrowed that gap.
In addition to the U.S. Senate contest, we Gilmer Countians and 1st Congressional District voters will have to decide on our Congressional candidates. Our current Congressman David McKinley (R-Wheeling) is being challenged by State Auditor Glen Gainer (D-Charleston). Gainer, like Tennant, has some roots in Gilmer County. At the same time, Congressman McKinley has done a good job for our whole state’s newspaper industry, in that when the Clarksburg Post Office’s Sectional Center was closed last winter and its mail routed down to Charleston, over half of all newspaper mail customers throughout this northern and central region didn’t get their newspapers in a timely manner for about three to four weeks. Congressman McKinley to the rescue, asking us publishers what the problem was and, then, calling postal officials in Washington, D.C., and in this state demanding that they get their daily operations and deliveries up to par. It worked, although he’s still vigilant for us in these postal concerns, which are still on-going, due to the Post Office Department’s closing of small, rural offices, thus laying off employees or cutting down their work hours to the point where they can’t handle the mail volume.
In addition to this Congressional race, the two other districts in the state are also being hotly contested. We editors favor U.S. Congressman Nick Joe Rahall (D-Beckley) in the 3rd District, because he, in seniority, is the No. 6th man in the U.S. House of Representatives, so his ability to secure federal grants and aid for the state is comparable to the clout of Sen. Rockefeller. Nick Casey (D-Charleston) is also a good choice in the 2nd Congressional District, in that his connections throughout the state would be helpful to the citizens in the entire state.
Remember that Early Voting in person in the County Clerk’s Office begins on Wednesday and runs through Saturday, Nov. 1. People may vote during regular business hours through the week from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Clerk’s Office will be open two Saturdays to allow for early voting: Sat., Oct. 25 and Sat., Nov. 1, with those hours being 9 a.m.-5 p.m. …
