MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Reaction to the 2026 midterm election continues to reverberate and some conclusions are being drawn by those who watch politics.
Fairmont State University Political Science professor Robert Bolton said this election showed political beliefs are becoming more national than local. Nationally, the sweep in the House and Senate is due to the increase in gas prices due to the conflict in Iran. The sluggish job market has many college students concerned about getting a job and many members of their families concerned about keeping their jobs.
Democrat Challenger John Williams wins the State Senate District 13 over incumbent Republican Mike Oliverio by a margin of just more 3,800 votes in a three-way race, with Libertarian Taylor Richmond earning a little more than 1,000 votes. It was until election night the polls showed the third candidate in the race really didn’t impact Oliverio.
“The fact that you had a Libertarian candidate perform fairly well by third-party standards is interesting, but even if you gave all of those votes to Mike Oliverio, it would not have changed the outcome,” Bolton said.
Oliverio won the race four years ago by a margin of less than 160 votes in a tight race across Monongalia and Marion counties. Williams added incumbent Joey Garcia, D-Marion, 13, to assist in the Marion County ground game, and Bolton said that it is visually apparent in the Fairmont area.
“When you have a yard sign out, that’s you saying to your neighbors, to every pedestrian, and to every driver, ‘This is who I’m backing.'” Bolton said. “I saw it probably three or four to one, Williams versus Oliverio, so I knew was going to have trouble on election night.”
When lawmakers gather for the 60-day session next year, Republicans will continue to hold the supermajority with 30 out of the 34 total seats. Bolton said Williams will be more effective for his district that includes several high-tech, advanced manufacturing, West Virginia University, and Fairmont State University if he is able to identify himself as a moderate.
“So, if Williams wants to even get his foot in the door and have a bill considered in the committee, it has to be moderate,” Bolton said. “He has to have that approach of the quorum toward his peers in the Republican caucus because if he doesn’t, they are going to totally slam the door in his face.”
In the Eastern District of Monongalia County, a new Democrat will serve on the commission after the first of the year. Julie Knight defeated incumbent Democrat Jeff Arnett and went on to win over Republican and former Monongalia County School Board president Ron Lytle.
“Certainly she was an extremely active presence on social media,” Bolton said. “She seemed to thread that needle to satisfy voters in this primarily college-centric town.”
In addition to being opposed to the use of Flock cameras, one of her campaign ideas is to “rough in” subdivision infrastructure to attract developers to build more affordable housing in the area. Bolton suggested Knight will have to find consensus with the other two commissioners to move her agenda forward. Additionally, the Morgantown housing market is driven largely by college students and will be very difficult to influence on a limited scale.
“The county commission does have a decent amount of power, but I’m very skeptical that one county commissioner can totally remake the way of life in an entire community,” Bolton said.