By Tom Breen and Lawrence Messina
CHARLESTON — West Virginia’s congressional delegation has undergone a role reversal this campaign season: The lone Republican seems poised for an easy re-election, while the two Democrats are on the defensive.
For the first time in years, Republicans are making a concerted bid to win seats that have been Democratic bastions for generations.
The race drawing the most attention is in the 1st U.S. House District where incumbent Rep. Alan Mollohan is running for his 15th term. Six Republicans are vying for a chance to face him in the general election, but Mollohan’s challenge doesn’t begin there: For the first time in 12 years, he faces a primary opponent — one with political credentials.
Morgantown Democrat Mike Oliverio will forgo a chance at fifth term in the state Senate to challenge Mollohan.
“Democracy works best when people have choices,” Oliverio said Wednesday. “I’m running to give the people of northern West Virginia a choice.”
A call to Mollohan’s campaign was not immediately returned Wednesday. Oliverio has previously run for secretary of state, losing in both the 2000 and 2004 primaries. Although he placed third statewide the second time around, he led in the 20 counties that make up Mollohan’s district.
Oliverio thinks he’s better positioned to beat the Republican nominee, whoever that turns out to be. The GOP has been targeting Mollohan for months over his votes on the federal stimulus, health care and other issues. Republicans had also hoped to tar Mollohan as the subject of a federal investigation.
Launched four years ago, the investigation followed complaints about a rapid rise of Mollohan’s personal assets and his habit of securing federal funds for district nonprofit groups he helped start.
Last month, however, the U.S. Justice Department announced it had closed the investigation without filing charges.
In 2006, the last time he faced opposition, Mollohan soundly defeated the Republican nominee, who had been recruited by the national GOP and played up the federal probe as a campaign issue.
“I can help the Democratic Party hold this seat in a year when there will be tremendous pressure on incumbents,” Oliverio said.
The crowded Republican field includes a former state senator, a business developer who belongs to a prominent political family and a former lawmaker and state GOP chair.
Nick Rahall, meanwhile, has represented West Virginia’s southern counties in Congress since 1977. Running for his 18th term, the Democrat also has a primary challenger but one not as well known as Oliverio.
The general election, however, could feature a Republican opponent who has previously won statewide office — as a Democrat.
Former state Supreme Court Justice Elliott “Spike” Maynard switched parties in November, more than a year after being trounced in the Democratic primary for a second term on the high court.
“That’s a get for the Republicans,” said Concord University political scientist Jim White. “That’s a quality challenger, someone who has been on the statewide ballot before and can dig into his own pockets or go somewhere else for a lot of money.”
Dogged by a conflict-of-interest scandal, Maynard had placed third in a 2008 primary race. He also ran third in each of the 17 counties in Rahall’s district except Mingo County, which was Maynard’s home at the time.
While not commenting directly on his possible opponent, Rahall said in a statement released by his campaign Wednesday that he’s confident his record in office resonates with voters.
“West Virginians know the difference between talking the talk and walking the walk,” he said. “I have the holes in the soles of my shoes to prove my dedication to our state, the jobs of hard-working West Virginians, the future of our communities.”
To challenge Rahall, Maynard will have to beat three other Republicans for the party’s nomination. That’s one reason that White doubts claims that 2010 will bring major political change in West Virginia.
“I think it’s a lot of hot air,” he said.
Defeating incumbents is always harder than it seems, White said. That, he added, could be why the Democratic Party hasn’t found a well-known challenger to take on the state’s sole Republican in the U.S. House.
Second District U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito is seeking her sixth term. After winning the Democrat-vacated seat and then beating back four consecutive high-profile Democratic challenges, Capito faces a former nun who has not yet raised enough money to require a campaign finance filing.
