Senate President Craig Blair was defeated in the Republican primary by challenger Tom Willis.
Blair was one of a number of incumbent losses in the Republican-dominated state Senate. Others who were defeated Tuesday included Mike Maroney of Marshall County, Chandler Swope of Mercer County and Robert Karnes of Randolph County.
Another Republican incumbent senator, Patricia Rucker, won by a relatively thin margin over challenger Paul Espinosa, who has served in leadership positions in the House of Delegates.
Half the state Senate is up for election every two years — so 17 seats were on ballots this cycle.
Blair, a Martinsburg resident who has been Senate president since 2020, was challenged by Willis and by former Delegate Mike Folk.
With 73 of 83 precincts reporting, Willis had 3,511 votes. Blair had 2,849 votes. Folk had 2,129.
“We’re feeling pretty confident that we’ll bring this one home,” Willis told WEPM Radio in Martinsburg as the results were still coming in.
He said of the Senate president, “I don’t really put too much stock in anybody’s title or position. We felt called to this race.”
As Senate president, Blair was also in the position of lieutenant governor. He spent much of his time at the Capitol in Charleston and emphasized economic development opportunities.
Blair was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2002 and elected to the Senate in 2012. He rose to Senate President in 2021 after his predecessor and friend, Mitch Carmichael, was defeated by school teacher Amy Nichole Grady, who is now the Senate education chairwoman.
The last time Blair’s seat was up, 2020, he earned 53 percent of the vote in the primary election to his far lesser known opponent’s 47 percent. That year’s general election was then a blowout for Blair.
Willis describes himself as “a constitutional Christian conservative.” He was a U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret and is a current member of the West Virginia National Guard. He’s a partner at a Martinsburg law firm and previously served as an international business attorney in Washington, D.C.
The Senate has a Republican supermajority, but it is divided among some who emphasize economic issues and others who are more driven by culture issues.
Blair and Karnes were particularly at odds. Karnes was defeated by developer Robbie Morris in a big district that includes Randolph County.
Blair had supported Espinosa, who lost his bid to defeat incumbent Senator Rucker. Rucker two years ago had strongly considered challenging Blair for Senate president. Blair removed Rucker as Senate Education chairwoman and handed that role to Grady.
Maroney, the Senate Health chairman, lost a district sprawling over nine counties to Chris Rose, a coal miner.
Swope, founder of Swope Construction in Bluefield, lost to challenger Craig Hart of Mingo County.
Some Republican incumbents successfully defended their seats. Those included Senator Ryan Weld, the majority whip, who defeated challenger Scott Adams. Senator Eric Nelson defeated former Delegate Chris Pritt.
Some senators were unopposed in their primaries. Those included Grady, longtime Senator Donna Boley and senators Glenn Jeffries, Jack David Woodrum, Patrick Martin and Rupie Phillips.
Scott Fuller was the winner in the Republican race for a seat that has been held by Democratic Senator Robert Plymale for many years. The Democratic candidate in that Senate race is Delegate Ric Griffith, a pharmacist and operator of the popular Pumpkin House attraction.
Senator Mark Hunt, R-Kanawha, wasn’t on the ballot to defend that seat but he sought and won the Republican nomination for state auditor.
In the House of Delegates, some incumbents were also defeated. Those included delegates Heather Tully of Nicholas County, Diana Winzenreid of Ohio County, Don Forscht of Berkeley County and David “Flimsy” Adkins of Lincoln County.