Andrew Anderson of Charleston has been appointed to a seat in the House of Delegates that opened after Larry Pack, a Republican, resigned to become a senior adviser for Gov. Jim Justice.
Anderson will serve the remainder of the term representing the 35th District in Kanawha County. He also intends to run for the seat this fall.
“Andrew is a rising star with real-world business experience who wants to continue building on the progress we’ve made in making West Virginia the best place to live and raise a family,” Justice stated in an announcement about the appointment.
Anderson is business development officer for Cooperative Business Services. He and his wife, Kristin, are parents of four children.
Before Pack resigned to work for the governor, he was running against fellow Delegate Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, a matchup that resulted from redistricting.
Anderson was filing today to run for the seat on the November ballot.
Earlier this week, Democrats announced a new candidate to run for another seat representing Kanawha County.
Wayne Crozier, pastor at Abundant Life Ministries in Charleston, is now running in place of Delegate Jim Barach, who announced last month that he is moving away. Barach has said he intends to serve out the remainder of his term but will give up his spot on the ballot.
That seat represents the 53rd Delegate District. The Republican in the race is incumbent Delegate Chris Pritt.
“We selected Wayne Crozier because he is well known in this region for his commitment to serving and helping others,” said Elaine Harris, chairwoman of the Kanawha County Democratic Executive Committee. “His ministry reaches across a host of economic, racial and generational boundaries to improve the lives of thousands.”
Barach, who won the Democratic Primary in May, announced this summer he would not compete in the General Election. The county Democratic Executive Committee is tasked with choosing a replacement.
“Much of my duties as delegate would be a very natural extension of my life’s work as a minister, so I feel very well prepared to take on this new role,” Crozier stated.