CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s Republican gubernatorial candidates are continuing to shake hands and thank voters for their support as they cast their own ballots in Tuesday’s Primary Election.
Former Kanawha County Delegate Moore Capito voted with his family Tuesday morning at Holz Elementary School in Charleston. He told MetroNews he’s traveled thousands of miles across the state and that Tuesday was about expressing his gratitude.
“Really it’s all about thanking all those people across West Virginia that have stood shoulder-to-shoulder with me over the past 17-18 months,” Capito said.
Capito, who labels himself as the “Get It Done Conservative” in the race, said the people of West Virginia keep him motivated. He said he’s felt even more energy this week.
“Sometimes people come up to me and say ‘are you tired?’ or ‘are you down?’ and I look at every single one of them and say ‘I’m not tired at all’ because all of those folks across this great state are the fuel that fills my tank every single day,” he said.
Gov. Jim Justice is leaving office to run for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate against West Virginia Second District Congressman Alex Mooney. Justice has endorsed Capito for governor and joined him on the campaign trail this week.
“Governor Justice’s endorsement was a massive boost to this campaign but what it really showed was that we are the ‘Get It Done Conservative’ and I am the candidate in this race that has a record of turning good ideas into good public policy,” Capito said.
State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said he believes he’s been able to appeal to voters across the state with his experience alone. Morrisey said on Tuesday his record speaks for itself.
“I feel good. I think we’ve been able to get our message out that there’s one proven conservative running with the record of getting big things done for the state. I’m hopeful the voters are going to look at my record over the last 12 years instead of all the nasty ads,” Morrisey said.
Morrisey plans to vote Tuesday night at Blue Ridge Elementary School in Harpers Ferry. He said he’s confident he will secure the GOP nomination and move on to the November election.
“I think folks know we’re going to be really serious on Day 1 and really helping the people of our state and our country,” he said. “I’m cautiously optimistic. I think we’re going to get this done.”
Secretary of State Mac Warner, along with covering his duties as the state’s elections chief, will be busy making sure the polls are running smoothly statewide; however, he’s also focused on making sure voters know he’s the Republican candidate who will unify the state.
“You just see different parts of the state as a living organism and different parts doing well, other parts not doing so well. That’s what I want to do as governor is to equalize that to get everyone in the state prospering. With me and my campaign, it all starts with education,” Warner said.
Warner casted his ballot on the first day of early voting May 1 at the Kanawha County Voter’s Registration Office in Charleston.
Warner said he’s choosing to focus on the positive momentum he’s created during his campaign.
“Everybody’s seen the negative ads out and I’ve tried to stay above that and just send out a positive message about how I want to fix education and use my military experience to apply that back here to the state of West Virginia,” he said.
Huntington businessman Chris Miller joined his wife and children to vote at Huntington High School in Huntington Tuesday morning. He said the most memorable part of the day was learning about how much of an impact he’s had on longtime voters.
“There was a 100-year-old lady who changed her voter registration to vote for me. Talk about something touching, but she made it a point to come up to me and tell me that. There was also a 92-year-old veteran of the Korean War who was a Marine who did the exact same thing,” Miller said. “You hear stories like this of people that are dying for something different even in these later generations. It’s just so cool to experience.”
Miller has always worked to inform voters that he’s not a career politician. He said that’s exactly the kind of person who should be leading West Virginia into the future.
“I feel confident because the people of West Virginia are tired of politicians, bureaucrats and attorneys. They really do want a conservative Christian business guy to roll up their sleeves and get to work,” he said.
Polls remain open until 7:30 p.m. Tuesday statewide.
MetroNews will provide live Decision 2024 coverage beginning at 7:06 p.m. on radio stations across West Virginia and online at wvmetronews.com.