In Tuesday election unofficial results, Dunmore farmer David McLaughlin edged out fellow farmer and Farm Bureau President Charles Wilfong in the race for the Pocahontas County Commission seat for the Northern District. Democrat McLaughlin defeated Republican Wilfong by 338 votes: 1,396 to 1,058. McLaughlin received 56.8 percent of the vote; Wilfong received 43.0 percent and five write-in candidates accounted for 0.20 percent of the vote.
For the unexpired term of the Southern District County Commission seat, Democrat William Beard won by a wide margin over Republican candidate Norman Alderman. Beard received 1,881 votes compared to Alderman’s 510 votes. Beard was appointed to the position in July 2013, following the passing of Democratic Commission President Dolan Irvine.
Pocahontas County voters disapproved a proposed school levy by a more than two-to-one margin: 1,677 to 827. The margin of disapproval was 67 percent against and 33 percent for the levy.
A large majority of Pocahontas County voters were against a State constitutional amendment to provide tax exemptions for certain youth groups. County voters disapproved the measure: 1,440 to 821. Statewide results on the ballot issue were not available at press time.
The race for the District 11 State Senate seat was very close in Pocahontas County, but Republican Robert Karnes appeared on his way to victory over Democratic incumbent Gregory Tucker. Tucker received 1,176 votes in Pocahontas County, compared to 1,140 votes for Karnes. However, at press time, Karnes held a 17-point advantage over Tucker, district wide, with 58 percent of the votes, compared to Tucker’s 42 percent.
The race for two House of Delegates District 43 seats was a neck-and-neck race for the second spot on the ballot in Pocahontas County. Incumbent Democrat Denise Campbell led the polling with 1,498 votes. Incumbent Democrat Bill Hartman received just two votes more than Republican Charles Kinnison: 1,123 for Hartman and 1,121 for Kinnison. District wide, at press time, Campbell had 35.4 percent of the vote; Hartman had 28.0 percent of the vote and Kinnison had 22.6 percent of the vote. Republican candidate Mary Boltz trailed by a wide margin, with 582 votes in Pocahontas County and 14.0 percent of the district-wide vote at press time.
Capito, Jenkins victorious in statewide races
Republican Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito was elected to the U.S. Senate and will become the first woman to serve as a U.S. Senator for The Mountain State. Capito led Democratic Secretary of State Natalie Tennant by more than 25 percentage points with two-thirds of precincts reporting. Capito received 1,416 votes in Pocahontas County compared to 890 votes for Tennant.
Republican State Senator Evan Jenkins was elected to the Third District U.S. Congressional seat, unseating Congressman Nick Rahall, who held the seat for 19 terms. The Associated Press called the race for Jenkins late Tuesday evening. With 481 of 622 precincts reporting, Jenkins had received 55 percent of the vote compared to Rahall’s 45 percent. Jenkins received 1,224 votes in Pocahontas County and Rahall, 1,166.
Election results are unofficial pending the canvass of votes, which will convene Monday morning at 8:30 a.m. See The Pocahontas Times website for updates and next Thursday’s print edition for a full election report.
