By: Jeff Jenkins | Posted: May 9, 2018 at 4:33 p.m. | Source: WV MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — There are some political newcomers who have advanced to the November General Election in state Senate races including a 30-year pastor and a community and economic development professional.
Dr. Rollan Roberts defeated Raleigh County Senator Lynne Arvon in Tuesday’s Republican primary in the 9th Senatorial District. Roberts is the longtime pastor at Victory Baptist Church in Beaver. He placed his name in the running when Gov. Jim Justice was looking for a quick replacement for now former Senator Jeff Mullins at the beginning of the last legislative session. Arvon was appointed. Roberts then decided to run against her.
He was successful Tuesday in the three counties that make up the district, Raleigh, Wyoming and McDowell counties. It was close. He won by less than 400 votes but Roberts said he didn’t have to fight name recognition problems.
“I’m a different kind of candidate. I’m not having to tell people who I am. I’ve been here for 30 years at Victory (Baptist Church), running the Christian school and our Christian school serves about four counties every year,” he said.
Terrell Ellis, owner of Terrell Ellis and Associates, is a single mother of four grown children who has been active in Kanawha Valley communities for years but has never run for political office. She finished in first place in Tuesday’s Democratic primary in the 17th Senatorial District over two other candidates, including Mary Ann Claytor who won a statewide primary two years ago.
Ellis told MetroNews Wednesday her community involvement over the years was a good building block for her campaign.
“Being from South Hills (Charleston), which is a real strong neighborhood in the district, certainly was very helpful. But I’ve also worked a lot in the Clendenin area, I’m known in South Charleston for some of the economic development work I’m doing and I’m known in the Upper Kanawha Valley,” Ellis said.
Ellis also had a good ground game. She and her volunteers knocked on nearly 8,000 doors in the district.
Longtime Delegate Bill Hamilton won every county in the 11th Senatorial District GOP primary against incumbent Senator Robert Karnes. Karnes called the impact of the teachers strike a bump in the road, Hamilton said.
“I knew better because they were still active in my campaign and they will continue to do so in the fall,” Hamilton said Wednesday on MetroNews “Talkline.”
Hamilton said Karnes went negative two weeks before the election and it wasn’t received well.
“They tainted me as a liberal,” Hamilton said. “You know, if I was liberal I might have won Upshur County one time but the second time I ran they would have booted me out.”
Hamilton has a strong rating from both labor and business which he said gives him broad support. He’ll face Pocahontas County attorney Laura Finch, a Democrat, in the fall election.
Ellis considers herself a moderate Democrat.
“I happen to be pro-economic development, I’m pro-business,” she said. “I just happen to think you can do all of that without affecting working families.”
She’ll face 17th District Senator Tom Takubo, R-Kanawha, in the fall. Ellis said she’ll begin knocking on doors again in a few days.
Roberts’ fall opponent is former state senator, former delegate Bill Wooton, a Democrat from Raleigh County. Roberts said they know each other.
“We are really on different ends of the spectrum–so people will have a distinct choice to make when it comes to Nov. 6,” he said.
Seventeen of the Senate’s 34 seats will be up for election and there will be challenged races in each one.
The award-winning native of Pratt, W.Va, took over as head of the news division of MetroNews in August 2000. Jeff can be reached at jjenkins@wvradio.com and Twitter @JeffJenkinsMN.
By: Phil Kabler, Statehouse Reporter | Posted: May 8, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail
Among contested House of Delegate primaries of local interest Tuesday, Dean Jeffries and David “Woody” Holmes won nominations for seats held by two long-serving delegates in the House.
Jeffries, an Elkview insurance agent prevailed in a three-person race for the Republican nomination for the 40th District seat held by House Speaker Tim Armstead, R-Kanawha, for nearly 20 years. Armstead opted not to seek re-election.
Jeffries, who billed himself as a Christian conservative Republican, and had endorsements from Armstead and the Kanawha County Republican Executive Committee, had 894 votes (53 percent), defeating lawyer Kenneth Tawney, who had 542 votes (32 percent). Ron Shamblin, a longtime union crane operator, who broke with the GOP over recent votes to repeal the state’s prevailing wage law and to enact right-to-work, finished third with 267 votes.
Jeffries faces Melissa Riggs Huffman, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary, in November’s general election.
In the 39th District, a Republican stronghold seat held for years by Delegate Ron Walters, R-Kanawha, until his sudden, forced resignation in March, David “Woody” Holmes prevailed in the Democrat primary, in what he hopes will be the first step in an effort to “flip” the longtime GOP seat.
Holmes, a union pipefitter and son of the late longtime state senator and Senate clerk Darrell Holmes, defeated Alex Urban, a West Virginia University law student, by a 641-578 margin.
He will face Delegate Sharon Malcolm, R-Kanawha, in the general election. Malcolm, who was appointed to the House on March 23 to replace Walters, is a retired state employee who was the first woman to serve as assistant doorkeeper in the House and assistant sergeant-at-arms in the Senate. She was unopposed in the Republican primary.
Meanwhile, in two multi-candidate House district races in Kanawha County — the 35th Republican and the 36th Democrat — the last-place finishers in their respective primaries were the proverbial odd men out.
In the 35th Republican primary, Delegates Moore Capito, Eric Nelson, and Charlotte Lane won nominations, along with Ed Burgess, while Bill Johnston finished fifth in the four-member district.
In the 36th Democratic primary, Delegates Larry Rowe and Andrew Robinson were nominated, along with Amanda Estep-Burton, while Clint Casto and James Elam were eliminated.
Reach Phil Kabler at philk@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-1220 or follow @PhilKabler on Twitter.
By: Rick Steelhammer, Staff Writer | Posted: May 8, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail
Thanks to voter approval of Gov. Jim Justice’s $1.6 billion Roads to Prosperity initiative and the Legislature’s approval of a $1 billion bond issue for highway construction last June, more than 30 road improvement projects could get underway this year in Kanawha County.
Posted: May 7, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield West Virginia announced recently that, as part of its fifth annual Ks for Kids program, the company will donate $5 to Elk River Backpack Blessings for every strikeout thrown by a West Virginia Power pitcher this season at Appalachian Power Park in Charleston.
The Elk River Backpack Blessings program provides food to elementary school students in the area who face a food shortage by providing them with a backpack of nutritious, child-friendly food at the end of each week. Since 2012, Elk River Backpack Blessings has grown to serve 500 children in seven schools in the Elk River community. The program is designed to help ease the hunger of children in need so that they can attend school regularly, have better health and are more successful in their classwork and overall daily lives.
“Through our annual Ks for Kids program, Highmark West Virginia and the West Virginia Power have the opportunity to spotlight an outstanding program in our community that is making a difference in the lives of our children,” said Highmark West Virginia President Jim Fawcett. “We all have a stake in creating healthier communities, and our support of Elk River Backpack Blessings is just one of the ways we can help give back.”
“Elk River Backpack Blessings appreciates the support of Highmark West Virginia and the West Virginia Power baseball team to help provide healthy, nutritious, child-friendly foods to put in weekend backpacks,” Elk River Backpack Blessings Director Debi O’Dell said. “It takes the whole community to keep our kids healthy and happy.”
Since 2014, $10,000 has been awarded through Ks for Kids to four different organizations.
“The West Virginia Power baseball team is excited to be partnering with two great organizations – Highmark West Virginia and Elk River Backpack Blessings – for the Ks for Kids program all season long at Appalachian Power Park,” said Tim Mueller, general manager of the West Virginia Power, an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. “It’s a great opportunity to raise awareness about child hunger in our community.”
The 2018 West Virginia Power baseball season got underway on April 5 with the squad’s first home game against the Greenville Drive. This year marks the 14th season for the West Virginia Power.
According to the Elk River Backpack Blessings website, a vendor sale to benefit the food program is scheduled for 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 2. The sale will be held at Mount Tabor United Methodist Church at 401 Church Road in Pinch.
Vendor registration is $20 per table plus at least one item from the vendor wares to be offered as a raffle prize. Only one vendor per company is permitted. To register or learn more, contact Jennifer O’Dell at 304-389-0393.
Hot dogs and barbecues will be available for purchase at the sale.
More information regarding the Elk River Backpack Blessings program — including how and where to make donations to the effort — is posted at www.elkriverblessings.org
Information is also available by sending email correspondence to erbpblessings@gmail.com, visiting the Elk River Backpack Blessing Facebook page or calling 304-767-0699.
By: Ryan Pritt, Prep Sports Reporter | Posted: May 7, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail Prep Sports
TEAM RECORDS
Team | W | L | Pct. |
Herbert Hoover | 26 | 0 | 1.00 |
Hurricane | 19 | 2 | .905 |
George Washington | 18 | 5 | .783 |
Nitro | 22 | 7 | .759 |
Poca | 21 | 8 | .724 |
Cross Lanes Christian | 17 | 8 | .680 |
Buffalo | 21 | 11 | .656 |
St. Albans | 16 | 9 | .640 |
Riverside | 14 | 8 | .636 |
Winfield | 13 | 16 | .448 |
Sissonville | 11 | 19 | .367 |
Charleston Catholic | 7 | 15 | .318 |
South Charleston | 6 | 18 | .250 |
Capital | 4 | 21 | .160 |
BATTING AVERAGE
(Minimum of two plate appearances per team game)
Player, team | AB | H | Avg. |
Kirsten Belcher, Hoover | 67 | 37 | .552 |
Caiti Mathes, Hurr. | 60 | 32 | .533 |
Jenna Thomas, Siss. | 90 | 48 | .533 |
Gracie Donato, Riv. | 57 | 30 | .526 |
Madison Ramirez, Riv. | 62 | 32 | .516 |
Olivia Corbett, Catholic | 51 | 25 | .490 |
Katlyn Rasnake, Buffalo | 88 | 43 | .489 |
Rebekah Woody, Hoover | 84 | 41 | .488 |
Lydia Sweat, Nitro | 75 | 36 | .480 |
Jillian Holley, SA | 70 | 33 | .471 |
Jasmine Symns, Riv. | 66 | 31 | .470 |
Sara Stepp, CLC | 75 | 35 | .467 |
Emma Groe, GW | 58 | 27 | .466 |
Haley Stepp, CLC | 56 | 26 | .464 |
Charity Stepp, CLC | 69 | 32 | .464 |
Hannah McDermitt, Riv. | 61 | 28 | .459 |
Kiersten Landers, Hurr. | 68 | 31 | .456 |
Kiersten Witters, CLC | 60 | 27 | .450 |
Hannah Pullen, Riv. | 60 | 27 | ,450 |
Megan Seafler, Hoover | 85 | 38 | .447 |
Kinsey Hudson, SA | 79 | 35 | .443 |
Morgan Larch, SC | 67 | 29 | .433 |
Cortney Fizer, Hoover | 58 | 25 | .431 |
Presley McGee, Hoover | 65 | 28 | .431 |
Taylor Bonnett, Poca | 79 | 34 | .430 |
Lauren Pauley, Riv. | 78 | 33 | .423 |
Jaelyn Beane, Siss. | 78 | 33 | .423 |
Emily Taylor, Siss. | 88 | 37 | .420 |
Lindsey Russell, Buff. | 91 | 38 | .418 |
Kalissa Lacy, GW | 55 | 23 | .418 |
Elyssa Medley, Winfield | 77 | 32 | .416 |
Jayme Bailey, Hurr. | 46 | 19 | .413 |
Taylor McCray, Hurr. | 63 | 26 | .413 |
Hailey Harr, Nitro | 73 | 30 | .411 |
Sydney Houck, Winfield | 88 | 36 | .409 |
Grace Smith, GW | 71 | 29 | .408 |
Taylor Long, Siss. | 86 | 35 | .407 |
Jess Canterbury, Hoover | 62 | 25 | .403 |
Brianna McCown, GW | 65 | 26 | .400 |
Kelly Kreitzer, Catholic | 51 | 20 | .393 |
Bella Savilla, Nitro | 84 | 33 | .393 |
Kelsie Lanham, Riv. | 46 | 18 | .391 |
Gracie Payne, SA | 72 | 28 | .389 |
Brooke Persinger, Buffalo | 80 | 31 | .388 |
Taylor Glancy, SA | 44 | 17 | .386 |
Alexis Bailey, Siss. | 83 | 32 | .386 |
Zoey Dunlap, Hurr. | 60 | 23 | .383 |
Mallori Chapman, Hoover | 71 | 27 | .380 |
Kenzie Hale, Winfield | 92 | 35 | .380 |
K.K. Short, Winfield | 72 | 27 | .375 |
Morgan Jennings, Siss. | 89 | 33 | .371 |
Delani Buckner, Hoover | 57 | 21 | .368 |
Kennedy Buckley, Riv. | 57 | 21 | .368 |
Lauren Price, GW | 63 | 23 | .365 |
Katy Darnell, GW | 66 | 24 | .364 |
Elizabeth Witzke, CLC | 70 | 25 | .357 |
Lindsey Phares, Hurr. | 59 | 32 | .356 |
Tori Gibeaut, Poca | 87 | 31 | .356 |
Rachel Walton, SC | 45 | 16 | .356 |
Maggie Bird, Buffalo | 79 | 28 | .354 |
Mercedes Bush, Poca | 85 | 30 | .353 |
HOME RUNS
16: Thomas, Sissonville
13: Mathes, Hurricane
7: Payne, SA
6: Belcher, Hoover; Donato, Riverside; Holley, SA
5: Bailey, Hurricane; Pullen, Riverside; Ramirez, Riverside
4: Russell, Buffalo; Bonnett, Poca; Medley, Winfield; Hale, Winfield
3: C. Stepp, CLC; McCown, GW; Woody, Hoover; Buckley, Riverside; Aly Soblit, Sissonville
2: Corbett, Catholic; Groe, GW; Smith, GW; Darnell, GW; Jordan Bell, GW; McGee, Hoover; Fizer, Hoover; Savilla, Nitro; Gibeaut, Poca; McDermitt, Riverside; Gracie Carnes, SA; Bailey, Sissonville; Honesty Bragg, Sissonville; Houck, Winfield; Grace Denison, Winfield
RBI
56: Thomas, Sissonville
46: Mathes, Hurricane
44: Belcher, Hoover
36: C. Stepp, CLC; Payne, SA
35: Sweat, Nitro
34: McCown, GW
32: Woody, Hoover; Holley, SA
31: Corbett, Catholic
30: Medley, Winfield
29: Russell, Buffalo; Witzke, CLC; Donato, Riverside
27: Fizer, Hoover
26: Savilla, Nitro; Ramirez, Riverside
25: Persinger, Buffalo; Groe, GW; Bonnett, Poca
TRIPLES
6: H. Stepp, CLC
5: Russell, Buffalo; C. Stepp, CLC
4: Darnell, GW
3: Chapman, Hoover; McDermitt, Riverside; Anna Falbo, SC; Taylor, Sissonville; Gaylor, Winfield
2: Smith, GW; Fizer, Hoover; Dunlap, Hurricane; Kerigan Moore, Nitro; Pauley, Riverside; Symns, Riverside; Buckley, Riverside; Hudson, SA; Julia VanCamp, SA; Medley, Winfield
DOUBLES
16: Thomas, Sissonville
14: Medley, Winfield
13: Sweat, Nitro
12: Persinger, Buffalo; McCray, Hurricane
11: Bonnett, Poca
10: Groe, GW; Price, GW; Hudson, SA
9: Russell, Buffalo; Chapman, Hoover; Savilla, Nitro
8: S. Stepp, CLC; Smith, GW; Fizer, Hoover; Belcher, Hoover; Harlie Vannatter, Hurricane; Harr, Nitro; Donato, Riverside
7: Corbett, Catholic; Jaelin Overton, GW; Bell, GW; Phares, Hurricane; Payne, SA; Aly Grover, SC; Walton, SC
STOLEN BASES
41: Rasnake, Buffalo
36: Moore, Nitro
28: Morgan Burdette, Nitro
25: Symns, Riverside
24: Landers, Hurricane
18: Bush, Poca
17: S. Stepp, CLC; Gibeaut, Poca
14: Kreitzer, Catholic; Bailey, Hurricane
13: C. Stepp, CLC; Seafler, Hoover
12: Jennings, Sissonville
10: H. Stepp, CLC; Woody, Hoover
PITCHING WINS
22-7: Savilla, Nitro
17-4: Bonnett, Poca
15-2: Vannatter, Hurricane
14-0: Buckner, Hoover
14-7: Hudson, SA
13-8: Russell, Buffalo
12-0: McGee, Hoover
12-3: McCown, GW
11-3: Pauley, Riverside
8-2: C. Stepp, CLC
8-3: Bird, Buffalo
8-5: Witzke, CLC
7-15: Corbett, Catholic
6-2: Smith, GW
6-8: Grover, SC
5-10: Gaylor, Winfield
ERA
0.33: Buckner, Hoover
0.98: McCown, GW
1.01: McGee, Hoover
1.24: Vannatter, Hurricane
1.45: Bonnett, Poca
1.93: Witzke, CLC
2.47: Savilla, Nitro
2.93: C. Stepp, CLC
2.95: Hudson, SA
2.96: Pauley, Riverside
3.27: Smith, GW
4.52: Medley, Winfield
4.69: Gaylor, WInfield
STRIKEOUTS
185: Savilla, Nitro
176: Buckner, Hoover
162: Bonnett, Poca
146: Hudson, SA
137: Russell, Buffalo
135: Corbett, Catholic
132: McCown, GW
131: Vannatter, Hurricane
117: Witzke, CLC
91: McGee, Hoover
82: Bailey, Sissonville
59: Bird, Buffalo
58: Pauley, Riverside
57: C. Stepp, CLC
50: Gaylor, Winfield
Reach Ryan Pritt at 304-348-7948, ryan.pritt@wvgazettemail.com or follow him @RPritt on Twitter
Gazette-Mail file photo
Posted: May 6, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail
According to unofficial totals from the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office, more than 68,000 people voted early for Tuesday’s primary election.
Of the 68,391 early and absentee ballots reported to the office, 34,996 were submitted by Democrats; 22,679 by Republicans; 35 by members of the Mountain Party; 206 by members of other political parties; and 10,475 by voters who aren’t members of any political party.
Some counties use methods other than the State Voter Registration System handled by the Secretary of State’s office, so the final early voting totals may be higher. For example, Monroe County only had 36 early votes recorded in the unofficial tally, while Upshur County had 39.
Kanawha County had the most early votes recorded. The Secretary of State’s office put the number at 6,809, but Kanawha County officials said in a news release Sunday afternoon that the total was 6,569.
Of those, Kanawha officials said, more than 2,000 cast their ballots at the five satellite early voting locations throughout the county. That included 689 at the Cross Lanes sheriff’s detachment, 506 at the Elkview sheriff’s detachment, 392 at the Sissonville Public Library, 352 at the Belle Town Hall and 207 at the Marmet Town Hall.
The Kanawha news release called the early voting turnout a success and said the numbers exceeded expectations.
“I want to thank County Clerk Vera McCormick, her dedicated staff, and our excellent poll workers,” Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper said in the release. “Early Community Voting required a tremendous amount of effort and would not have been possible without the hard work of so many.”
Early voting began April 25 and ended Saturday. The primary election is Tuesday; polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
By: Rusty Udy, Register-Herald Sports Writer | Posted: May 6, 2018 | Source: Beckley Register-Herald
Is it really May already?
With all of the snow and rain over the first few weeks of the softball and baseball season, it seems like the season really just started a couple of weeks ago. (more…)
Many of the changes made to the state’s hunting-season structure focus on enticing hunters to kill more antlerless deer — some of them during the traditional fall seasons, and some during a pair of newly created January seasons. John McCoy | Gazette-Mail
By: John McCoy, Outdoors Reporter | Posted: May 5, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail
West Virginians will soon have more days devoted to deer hunting.
State wildlife officials have voted to extend the 2018 whitetail hunt into 2019 by creating an entirely new season and by extending an existing season.
The new season, dubbed “Mountaineer Heritage Season,” will be open to hunters willing to use primitive weapons — longbows or recurve bows, or muzzle-loading flintlock or sidelock percussion rifles.
The four-day hunt, scheduled for Jan. 10, 2019 through Jan. 13, 2019, will not be open to hunters who use compound bows, crossbows, in-line muzzleloaders or modern firearms. In four counties — Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming, where firearm hunting for deer is prohibited — hunters will be restricted to longbows or recurve bows.
Division of Natural Resources officials proposed the new season at the Natural Resources Commission’s February meeting, and the commission approved it at its meeting in late April.
Commissioners also approved the DNR’s proposal to split the state’s existing archery-and-crossbow season for urban deer into two segments, and to hold one of those segments in mid-to-late January.
The first segment of the season will end as usual on Dec. 31, and the second segment will run from Jan. 14 through Jan. 31. DNR officials originally asked for the second segment to end on Jan. 20, but commissioners voted instead to extend it through the end of the month.
Another regulation change split the state’s wild boar hunting season into two segments, and moved one of those segments to early February.
The first segments will follow the usual format — an archery-and-crossbow season from Sept. 29 through Dec. 31, and a firearm season from Oct. 27 through Nov. 3. The second segment, a three-day hunt open to both firearm and archery/crossbow enthusiasts, will take place Feb. 1-3, 2019.
Commissioners also approved the DNR’s recommendations for changes to the state’s antlerless-deer and traditional muzzleloader seasons.
One minor change to the antlerless-deer season involved the addition of one more day to the October segment and one more day to the December segment. The major change will force hunters in counties with high whitetail populations to kill an antlerless deer before killing a second buck.
In the past, the regulation had been interpreted as discipline-specific; an archer who killed a buck with a bow would have to kill a doe with a bow before killing a second buck with a bow. If that hunter wanted to switch to a gun before killing an antlerless deer, he or she was able to kill a buck right off the bat.
Now, if an archer kills a buck with a bow, he or she now will have to kill an antlerless deer, either with a gun or a bow, before killing a buck with a gun.
At the same time they imposed that requirement, however, DNR officials dramatically reduced the number of “earn-a-second-buck” counties. Last year, 23 counties fell into that category. This year, that total will drop to 12.
Overall, the DNR’s antlerless-deer regulations for the 2018-19 season will be slightly more conservative than those for 2017-18.
Twenty-one counties, or parts thereof, will have more restrictive bag limits this year than in 2016. Only five will have more liberal limits. Twenty-eight will remain unchanged.
Those with more restrictive limits will include Braxton, Brooke, Gilmer, Harrison, Jackson, Lewis, Lincoln, Marion, Mason, Mercer, Morgan, Pleasants, Putnam, Roane, Summers, Taylor, Upshur, northern Wayne, Webster, Wetzel and Wirt.
Those with more liberal limits will include Clay, eastern Fayette, Nicholas, Pendleton and Preston.
At the same time the commissioners voted to split several seasons, they voted to consolidate the state’s archery-and-crossbow season for black bears. In the past, bowhunters were prohibited from hunting bears during the firearm season for buck deer. Now they’ll be able to. The consolidated season will begin on Sept. 29, 2018, and end on Dec. 31.
Commissioners also approved two other bear-related changes, doubling the length of one early-fall season and creating another from whole cloth.
The early-September firearm season for bears in Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming counties will expand to 16 days instead of the traditional eight. The season will open on Sept. 1 and end on Sept. 16.
A brand-new firearm season will take place Oct. 25-28 during the state’s early firearm season for antlerless deer. Bear hunting will take place only in counties where a two-bear limit is in effect, and hunters will not be allowed to use dogs.
Reach John McCoy at johnmccoy@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-1231 or follow @GazMailOutdoors on Twitter.
Herbert Hoover’s Megan Seafler beats the throw to Roane County first baseman Abby Nichols during the Huskies’ sectional tournament clincher. Craig Hudson | Gazette-Mail
By: Ryan Pritt, Staff Writer | Posted: May 4, 2018 | Source: WV Gazette-Mail
It doesn’t take a degree in mathematics to figure out that if Herbert Hoover’s pitching and defense continues down the postseason path it has started on, the Huskies are going to be impossible to beat.