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West Virginia, State Senate, District 8

West Virginia State Senate District 8
Current incumbentsGlenn Jeffries Democratic Party
Richard Lindsay Democratic Party
Population193,063
Voting age79.4% age 18 and over

West Virginia's eighth state senate district is represented by Democratic Senators Glenn Jeffries and Richard Lindsay.

As of the 2010 census, a total of 193,063 civilians reside within West Virginia's eighth and seventeenth state senate district. West Virginia state senators represent an average of 54,500 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 53,187 residents.

About the office

Members of the West Virginia State Senate serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. West Virginia legislators assume office the first day of December following the election.

Qualifications

Section 13 of Article 6 of the West Virginia Constitution states, "No person holding any other lucrative office or employment under this state, the United States, or any foreign government; no member of Congress; and no person who is sheriff, constable, or clerk of any court of record, shall be eligible to a seat in the Legislature."

Salaries

State legislators
SalaryPer diem
$20,000/year$131/day in session.Set by the compensation commission.

Vacancies

If there is a vacancy in the senate, the Governor is responsible for filling any vacancy.

There are two procedures for filling vacancies dependent upon how much time is left in the vacant senator's term. A gubernatorial appointment is required if less than two months and two years are left in the term. A temporary gubernatorial appointment is required for any vacancy that has more than two months and two years remaining. The person who is selected by the Governor to fill the seat on an interim basis, serves until the next scheduled general election. A special election must be held to determine a permanent replacement. The executive committee of the political party that holds the vacant senate seat is responsible for making recommendations to the Governor on any appointment.

Elections

2020

Elections for the office of West Virginia State Senate will take place in 2020. The general election will be held on November 3, 2020. A primary is scheduled for May 12, 2020. The filing deadline is January 25, 2020.

2018

General election
General election for West Virginia State Senate District 8

Richard Lindsay (D) defeated incumbent Ed Gaunch (R) in the general election for West Virginia State Senate District 8 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Richard Lindsay (D)
50.3
16,537

Ed Gaunch (R)
49.7
16,372

Total votes: 32,909
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for West Virginia State Senate District 8

Richard Lindsay defeated Mark Hunt in the Democratic primary for West Virginia State Senate District 8 on May 8, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes

Richard Lindsay (D)
51.7
4,721

Mark Hunt (D)
48.3
4,407

Total votes: 9,128
Republican primary election
Republican primary for West Virginia State Senate District 8

Incumbent Ed Gaunch advanced from the Republican primary for West Virginia State Senate District 8 on May 8, 2018.

Candidate

Ed Gaunch (R)

2016

Elections for the West Virginia State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on May 10, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was January 30, 2016.

Glenn Jeffries defeated incumbent Chris Walters in the West Virginia State Senate District 8 general election.

West Virginia State Senate District 8, General Election, 2016

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Glenn Jeffries 53.08% 20,768
Republican Chris Walters Incumbent 46.92% 18,357
Total Votes 39,125
Source: West Virginia Secretary of State

Glenn Jeffries ran unopposed in the West Virginia State Senate District 8 Democratic primary.

West Virginia State Senate District 8, Democratic Primary, 2016

Party Candidate
Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Glenn Jeffries (unopposed)

Incumbent Chris Walters ran unopposed in the West Virginia State Senate District 8 Republican primary.

West Virginia State Senate District 8, Republican Primary, 2016

Party Candidate
Republican Green check mark transparent.png Chris Walters Incumbent (unopposed)


2014

Elections for the West Virginia State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 13, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was January 25, 2014. Incumbent Erik P. Wells was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while Ed Gaunch was unopposed in the Republican primary. Gaunch defeated Wells and Mike Fisher (Constitution) in the general election.

West Virginia State Senate District 8, General Election, 2014

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngEd Gaunch 53% 14,094
Democratic Erik P. Wells Incumbent 43.1% 11,472
Constitution Mike Fisher 3.9% 1,041
Total Votes 26,607

2012

Elections for the office of West Virginia State Senate consisted of a primary election on May 8, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. Republican Chris Walters defeated Democrat Joshua R. Martin in the general election. Walters was unopposed in the Republican primary election. Martin defeated Jennifer Scragg Karr in the Democratic primary election.


West Virginia State Senate, District 8, General Election, 2012

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Republican Green check mark transparent.pngChris Walters 52.9% 19,123
Democratic Joshua Martin 47.1% 17,039
Total Votes 36,162

West Virginia State Senate, District 8 Democratic Primary, 2012

Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngJoshua Martin 54.3% 3,928
Jennifer Scragg Karr 45.7% 3,307
Total Votes 7,235

2010

Elections for the office of West Virginia State Senate consisted of a primary election on May 11, 2010, and a general election on November 2, 2010. Democratic incumbent Erik Wells defeated Republican Bob Ore in the general election. Wells defeated Richard Robb and Richard Lindsay, II in the Democratic primary election. Ore was unopposed in the Republican primary election.

West Virginia State Senate, District 8, General Election, 2010

Party Candidate Vote % Votes
Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngErik Wells Incumbent 63.2% 36,280
Republican Bob Ore 36.8% 21,116
Total Votes 57,396

West Virginia State Senate District 8 Democratic Primary, 2010

Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngErik Wells 50.4% 8,343
Richard Robb 41.5% 6,866
Richard Lindsay 8.2% 1,352
Total Votes 16,561

Campaign contributions

From 2002 to 2016, candidates for West Virginia State Senate District 8 raised a total of $2,299,565. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $82,127 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, West Virginia State Senate District 8

Year Amount Candidates Average
2016 $503,803 2 $251,902
2014 $213,020 3 $71,007
2012 * $151,231 3 $50,410
2010 $114,696 4 $28,674
2008 $82,696 3 $27,565
2006 $324,837 4 $81,209
2004 $373,833 3 $124,611
2002 $142,288 3 $47,429
2000 $393,161 3 $131,054
Total $2,299,565 28 $82,127
* Campaign finance data for 2012 is incomplete for this district.