CHARLESTON, W.Va. — President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced nominees for eight U.S. attorney positions, including two people who would lead West Virginia’s districts.
Biden named state Sen. William Ihlenfeld, D-Ohio, as U.S. attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia and Circuit Court Judge William Thompson for the Southern District of West Virginia.
Ihlenfeld served as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia from 2010 to 2016. He previously served as a state prosecutor in Brooke County from 2007 to 2010. He has served as a member of the West Virginia Senate since 2019.
“I’m humbled to have been nominated by President Biden to serve as United States Attorney,” Ihlenfeld tweeted. “If confirmed, it will be an honor to join a tremendous team of career public servants dedicated to protecting the public.”
Senate Democratic leaders congratulated Ihlenheld on the nomination.
“I’m confident he will be tenacious in enforcing the law and seeking justice as the US Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia,” Senate Minority Leader Stephen Baldwin, D-Greenbrier, said.
Thompson was appointed as a judge for West Virginia’s 25th Judicial Circuit in Boone and Lincoln counties in 2007. He was reelected in 2008 and 2016. The White House noted Thompson’s efforts related to treatment courts, including the first family treatment court in West Virginia.
The U.S. Senate has to confirm both nominations.