The first three candidates in the race for governor in 2016 have officially tossed their hats into the ring. Current Senate President and prominent Mercer County businessman Bill Cole (R-Mercer) announced Tuesday that he will be running for governor in 2016. He is joined by Greenbrier Resort owner Jim Justice, who announced he is running for the Democratic nomination in May and former Senate President Jeff Kessler (D-Ohio), who announced his run for the governorship in March.
Cole, who also serves as the state’s Lieutenant Governor, said he “went to Charleston to try to make a difference. When you consider public service, the question for me is how I can best serve, and in what function and capacity I can best serve.”
“There is a limit to what can be accomplished legislatively,” Cole said. “In order to complement the extraordinary efforts of our Legislature, we need a chief executive working together through the executive branch to streamline government — to be a partner to those creating businesses — not a roadblock. I believe my lifelong experiences in business as well as my accomplishments as Senate President give me a unique opportunity to lead our state government in a new direction.”
Cole is credited by many for turning the state balance of power to GOP control for the first time in more than 80 years. Republicans took control of the state House and Senate in the November 2014 election.
Justice, who changed his registration from Republican to Democrat at the end of February, promised a campaign focused on jobs and reuniting West Virginia families.
“I tell you there’s something really, really wrong when our families in this state are fragmented all to pieces—and they are. And why?” Justice asked. “Because they can’t find a job. The kids are all gone because they can’t find a job.”
Vowing bold leadership to rebuild the state’s economy, the 64-year-old Justice said he would be a different kind of candidate, a non-politician, who isn’t worried about preserving himself in office. “I can tell you that our state and our people are hurting and we need somebody to step forward that doesn’t have a vested interest in trying to do something for themselves,” he said. “You need somebody that loves our state and doesn’t want a nickel for doing it.”
In media interviews after his announcement, Kessler said he’s “not going to be afraid to be a Democrat.” Kessler is embracing his party affiliation. “We’ve done some wonderful things as Democrats and we’ve run from being Democrats, unfortunately, for the last few cycles,” he told Hoppy Kerchival on the Talkline radio show shortly after his announcement.
Kessler embraces the Obamacare and has also spent considerable time during the recent legislative session speaking on behalf of labor and other Democratic and left-leaning organizations.