State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has won the Republican nomination for West Virginia governor in a crowded GOP field to succeed Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV).
The Associated Press called the race for Morrisey at 10:25 p.m., about three hours after the polls closed in West Virginia. With 92% of ballots counted, Morrisey led with 33% of the vote.
Morrisey narrowly defeated his closest competition, former state Rep. Moore Capito, who received 27.8% support. The field also included businessman Chris Miller, who received 20.4% support, and state Secretary of State Mac Warner, who received 16.1% of the vote. The race included two lesser-known candidates, Kevin Christian and Mitch Roberts, who both received 1.4% in the race.
Morrisey has been known for mounting legal challenges against the Obama and Biden administrations on environmental regulations and more. Capito, the grandson of former West Virginia Republican Gov. Arch Moore Jr., was elected to the House in 2016 representing Kanawha County. He serves as chairman of the West Virginia legislature’s Judiciary Committee.
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Many of the candidates running have ties to West Virginia politics. Morrisey ran against outgoing Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) in 2018, whereas Capito’s mother is Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and Miller’s mother is current Rep. Carol Miller (R-WV). In West Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District, Riley Moore, the nephew of Sen. Capito, is one step closer to joining her in Congress after winning the Republican nomination on Tuesday.
Morrisey will face Huntington Mayor Steve Williams, the Democratic nominee, in November.
