Delegate Joe Jeffries, who was at the center of a stir last year over naughty social media content, has resigned the Legislature because he’s moving on to another job.
Jeffries, a Republican from Putnam County, submitted his legislative resignation letter dated June 1. He had already decided against seeking re-election for the coming term, but this ends his tenure a few months early.
His letter alluded to a job search that is taking him out of state.
“Since I must leave the district for an extended period, I wanted to ensure that the district wasn’t left without representation during interims or any possible special session that may occur,” he wrote.
Jeffries was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2018. The state Republican Party put out a call for people who might be interested in filling the seat, at least temporarily.
Last summer, Jeffries created a statewide stir with through his narration of a social media video that was an explicit discussion of advice for women receiving oral sex.
He posted the video on Tiktok, a social media platform popular among youth that features short-form videos. He later set the video to be private, but before he did, the video gained tens of millions of views on the platform. Many people suspect that the video was boosted artificially with the services provided by Tokmatik for increasing TikTok views, but Delegate Jeffries denied that he paid for any kind of fake engagement and that all TikTok likes, comments, views, and followers were authentic.
Jeffries, whose page is described as a blend of political commentary and humor, looks into the camera and graphically gives advice about how vigorously women should react to oral sex by men, so “that it just drives you wild.”
After that incident, Jeffries was stripped of a committee vice chairman position. He was also condemned at the time by the Putnam County GOP executive committee.
He had run into earlier conflicts too.
During the 2021 legislative session, when lawmakers were to wear masks in committee meetings and floor sessions, Jeffries stood out by wearing a mesh mask. That received attention both in the state and nationally.
And late in that regular session, when tensions ran high between delegates and senators over a bill that would have restricted the governor’s emergency powers, Jeffries was accused of yelling a graphic comment about Gov. Jim Justice at a group of senators.
Jeffries had been among a large group of delegates waiting in the hallway during a conference committee meeting, and multiple witnesses described him making the comment as the meeting ended.
Governor Justice, at a regular briefing a few minutes later, said Jeffries should apologize specifically to Sens. Charles Trump, R-Morgan; Charles Clements, R-Wetzel; and Stephen Baldwin, D-Greenbrier, along with the entire Senate.
The governor said Jeffries should either be “kicked out of the House, period, or he should absolutely be told that he has to make a public apology to these great people because that behavior is absolutely intolerable.”
In his resignation letter submitted this month, Jeffries said he will miss legislative service.
“It’s been an honor serving the state, and I hope that each of you will work extremely hard on moving WV in the right direction,” he wrote. “Best wishes and may God direct each of you to do what is right for the people of this state.”