The 2008 congressional elections in West Virginia was held on November 4, 2008, to determine who would represent the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; whoever is elected will serve in the

111th Congress The 111th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011. It began during the last weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with th ...

from January 4, 2009, until January 3, 2011. The election coincided with the

2008 U.S. presidential election The 2008 United States presidential election was the 56th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior senator from ...

. West Virginia has three seats in the House, apportioned according to the

2000 United States Census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...

. Its 2007–2008 congressional delegation consisted of two Democrats and one

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. , this is the last time that Democrats won a majority of congressional districts from West Virginia.

Overview

District 1

Democratic incumbent

Alan Mollohan Alan Bowlby Mollohan (born May 14, 1943) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1983 to 2011. He was a member of the Democratic Party and the Blue Dog Coalition. The district encompasses the northern part of th ...

ran unopposed. CQ Politics ranked the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 2

Republican incumbent

Shelley Moore Capito Shelley Wellons Moore Capito ( ; born November 26, 1953) is an American politician and retired educator serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from West Virginia since 2015. A me ...

campaign website
won against Democratic nominee Anne Barth
campaign website
, a longtime former aide to U.S. Senator

Robert Byrd Robert Carlyle Byrd (born Cornelius Calvin Sale Jr.; November 20, 1917 – June 28, 2010) was an American politician and musician who served as a United States senator from West Virginia for over 51 years, from 1959 until his death in 2010. A ...

. CQ Politics ranked the race 'Leans Republican'. The Rothenberg Political Report considered it 'Republican Favored'. The Cook Political Report considered it 'Likely Republican'. In 2006, Capito was reelected with 57%, a solid margin, but not a sign of political security. She faced a potentially difficult challenge from state Sen.

John Unger John Ronald Unger II is a former American politician and magistrate. Prior to his appointment as a Berkeley County magistrate, Unger represented the 16th district in the West Virginia Senate from 1999 to 2021. The 16th District includes all of ...

(D), but Unger surprised many when he dropped out of the race.Mannix Porterfield
State Sen. Unger running for U.S. Congress
''The Register Herald'' May 21, 2007 Retrieved June 2, 2007

District 3

Democratic incumbent

Nick Rahall Nicholas Joseph Rahall II (born May 20, 1949) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1977 to 2015. He is the longest-serving member ever of the United States Hou ...

was challenged by Republican Marty Gearheart. CQ Politics ranked the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

References

External links

Elections
at the ''West Virginia Secretary of State''
U.S. Congress candidates for West Virginia
at

Project Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected officials in si ...

Campaign contributions for West Virginia congressional races
from

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP). ...

{{2008 United States elections

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