CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s gubernatorial candidates spent the last 24 hours of their campaign rallying with their supporters ahead of Election Day.
State Senate President Bill Cole (R-Mercer, 06), the Republican nominee, held a rally in Charleston, where he told MetroNews he would be able “to sleep well” Monday night. He said he’s confident voters will elect him to be the state’s next governor.
“I feel very positive. I feel like we’ve left it all out there. There’s nothing else we could do,” Cole said.
Greenbrier Resort Owner Jim Justice, the Democratic nominee, was in Rainelle Monday night to hold a rally at the Park Center Shopping Complex.
Justice told the crowd there’s no question he’s the right guy for the job.
“You’ve just never had a Jim Justice,” he said. “Somebody that can sell our state, somebody that’s creative, somebody that has a lot of contacts and somebody that my dad has said had done done it!”
Local supporters were there in Rainelle where Justice told them he “wouldn’t take no” as their governor.
“Wouldn’t take no at the gymnasium at Richwood and won’t take no for you ever,” he said.
A number of Republican candidates and supporters attended Cole’s rally held at The Grill restaurant on the city’s West Side.
U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) was with her son Moore Capito, a Republican candidate for the House of Delegates 35th district. She said this will be a historic election, specifically for Republicans.
“Honestly, being out and around over the last three or four weeks, I think 2016 could be bigger than 2014 for Republicans statewide. We just got to get our vote out,” Capito said.
Cole said he believes the GOP will remain in control.
“West Virginia has been moving rapidly to be a more conservative state, a Red state, and I believe what we saw four years ago and two years ago will continue on,” he said.
Brian Mace, of St. Albans, was at Cole’s rally. He said he’s supporting Cole for several reasons.
“He actually has a plan. He’s actually served in our Senate. He has a lot of experience and, I hate to say it, he pays his bills,” he said.
Chants of “Cole! Cole! Cole!” could be heard from inside the restaurant. Capito spoke to the crowd before that and told them why she’s voting for Cole.
“He has one quality, in my mind, that is above all the reason to vote for him. He’s got courage. He’s got the courage of his conviction to do what he believes is right no matter when, no matter how and no matter how hard,” she said.
But when it all comes down to Election Day, Captio told the candidates: “You know what I’m going to do tomorrow morning? I’m going to go out and vote for every single one of you!”
Justice, speaking for approximately 37 minutes, talked about moving West Virginia forward by growing jobs, agriculture, coal, timber and more.
He said, this Election Eve, he still believes “Bill Cole wants to be your governor for Bill Cole.”
“I don’t want anything,” Justice said. “There are certain friends that you need to love from a distance. Think about that. Well, I’m going to love Bill from a distance.”
Election Day is Tuesday.
Live coverage of the results of Decision 2016 begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday on the MetroNews Radio Network and online at wvmetronews.com.