CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia Democrats are gearing up for Election Day with nearly five weeks to go.
“We are going to gain seats in the House,” House Minority Leader and Del. Sean Hornbuckle, D-Cabell, told MetroNews. “We’re going to gain seats in the Senate. We’re gonna win some commission races, and it’s gonna be a message that people are tired of being lied to. People are tired of being played with, and they want action to improve their lives now.”
Election Day is November 3. Hornbuckle and other Democrats gathered for the second stop on the Kitchen Table Tour Monday night, a rally at Slack Plaza in Charleston. Numerous candidates running for seats in the November General Election spoke during the event. The six-county tour rolls on in Boone County on Wednesday.
Del. Hollis Lewis, D-Kanawha, said the Kitchen Table Tour is all about meeting people where they are. He said it’s an opportunity for residents to share their thoughts and concerns with current officeholders along with candidates. Additionally, he said, residents can get to know the candidates running for office in November.
“We want to just make sure that what we’re doing is highlighting everyday issues to everyday people,” Lewis said, “and trying to take those issues to the state House to develop policies to actually help people.”
Charleston resident Judy Hamilton said that the Kitchen Table Tour demonstrated the care that Democratic leaders have about rising gas and grocery prices. She was hopeful that those who attended the event leave with one main takeaway.
“My hope is that they will come away from this realizing that not all politicians are uncaring and think that affordability is a hoax,” Hamilton said. “They understand it is real.”
Hornbuckle said the Kitchen Table Tour is open for anyone, not just Democrats, to participate and learn. He said that West Virginia’s population loss is something that has to be addressed going forward. While the economic investments in the state are all fine and good, he said, there has to be a workforce to meet it.
“I think the first thing that we’ve got to really hunker down on is our free schools, our public education,” Hornbuckle said. “It doesn’t matter what industry we bring in here if our people from West Virginia are not the workforce that they need to be able to get those jobs. It’s all about the economy. We’ve got to be preparing our young people to be able to take jobs, to be able to add to the workforce, add to the economy.”
Hamilton said she wants changes following actions taken by those currently in charge in West Virginia. She said that frustration is shared by many, not only Democrats.
“I’m very frustrated and angry that in the last legislative session, the Republican supermajority in the legislature took away communities’ rights to have any say in the data centers, and in plastic burning facilities, being placed next to their schools, that that was removed from our ability to even make a public comment about,” Hamilton said. “I think Republicans, Democrats, and independents are all upset about that, rightfully so.”
While data centers and education have been at the forefront of concerns shared throughout the tour so far, Lewis said that the Valley Link and Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link transmission lines have elicited conversation. He said that going forward, Democrats hope to implement solutions to those concerns if things go their way in November.
“Democrats in West Virginia, we need numbers in the state House to establish balance,” Lewis said. “We’re not under any imaginary things that it’s going to be a 50-50 split. However, with more numbers, it gives us a little bit more leverage to introduce policies.”
The final half of the Kitchen Table Tour includes stops in Jefferson County on Sunday, Hancock County on October 14, and Cabell County on October 19.