# 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia

Elections in West Virginia :
Federal government
Presidential elections
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Presidential primaries
Democratic
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Republican
2000
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
U.S. Senate elections
1863
1865
1871
1877
1877 sp
1882
1883
1887
1888
1889
1892
1893
1893 sp
1895
1899
1901
1905
1907
1911
1911 sp
1913
1916
1918
1922
1924
1928
1930
1934
1936
1940
1942
1942 sp
1946
1948
1952
1954
1956 sp
1958
1958 sp
1960
1964
1966
1970
1972
1976
1978
1982
1984
1988
1990
1994
1996
2000
2002
2006
2008
2010 sp
2012
2014
2018
2020
2024
2026
U.S. House of Representatives elections
1863
1864
1866
1868
1870
1872
1874
1876
1878
1880
1882
1883
3rd sp
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1905
2nd sp
1906
1908
1910
1912
1913
1st sp
1914
1916
2nd sp
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1933
3rd sp
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1951
5th sp
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
3rd sp
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
State government
General elections
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
Gubernatorial elections
1863
1864
1866
1868
1870
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2011 sp
2012
2016
2020
2024
Attorney General elections
2012
2016
2020
2024
Secretary of State elections
2012
2016
2020
2024
Auditor elections
2012
2016
2020
2024
Treasurer elections
2012
2016
2020
2024
Senate elections
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
House of Delegates elections
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
Local government
Charleston (mayoral elections)
2022
Huntington (municipal elections)
2020
2024
Wheeling (municipal elections)
2020
2024 :
vte :
The 2014 United States House of Representatives election in West Virginia was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the three U.S. representatives from West Virginia, one from each of the state's three congressional districts.
Republicans won control of every congressional district in West Virginia for the first time since the 61st Congress ended in 1911.
Representatives are elected for two-year terms. Those elected served in the 114th Congress from January 2015 until January 2017.

## Overview

United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia, 2014 :
| Party | Party | Votes | Percentage | Seats | +/– |
| | Republican | 242,823 | 55.26% | 3 | +1 |
| | Democratic | 182,484 | 41.53% | 0 | -1 |
| | Libertarian | 7,682 | 1.75% | 0 | – |
| | Independents | 6,399 | 1.46% | 0 | – |
| Totals | Totals | 439,388 | 100.00% | 3 | — |

### By district

Results of the 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia by district:
| District | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Others | Others | Total | Total | Result |
| District | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % | Result |
| District 1 | 92,491 | 63.90% | 52,109 | 36.00% | 137 | 0.10% | 144,737 | 100% | Republican hold |
| District 2 | 72,619 | 47.08% | 67,687 | 43.88% | 13,944 | 9.04% | 154,250 | 100% | Republican hold |
| District 3 | 77,713 | 55.35% | 62,688 | 44.65% | 0 | 0.00% | 140,401 | 100% | Republican gain |
| Total | 242,823 | 55.26% | 182,484 | 41.53% | 14,081 | 3.21% | 439,388 | 100% | |

## District 1

Incumbent Republican David McKinley, who had represented the district since 2011, ran for re-election.

### Republican primary

While McKinley had expressed some interest in running for Senate, he later declared he would not run. He filed for re-election to his House seat on January 15, 2014.

#### Candidates
##### Nominee

* David McKinley, incumbent U.S. Representative

#### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | David McKinley (incumbent) | 27,589 | 100.0 |

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates
##### Nominee

* Glen Gainer III, State Auditor

#### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Glen Gainer III | 34,764 | 100.0 |

### General election
#### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | David McKinley (R) | Glen Gainer (D) | Undecided |
| YouGov | October 16–23, 2014 | 276 | ± 10% | 53% | 25% | 22% |

#### Results

West Virginia's 1st congressional district, 2014 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | David McKinley (incumbent) | 92,491 | 64.0 |
| | Democratic | Glen Gainer III | 52,109 | 36.0 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 144,600 | 100.0 |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

## District 2

Incumbent Republican Shelley Moore Capito, who had represented the district since 2001, won her seventh term in Congress with almost 70 percent of the vote in 2012. She announced that she would not run for re-election, so that she could run for the United States Senate seat held by retiring Democrat Jay Rockefeller.

### Republican primary
#### Candidates
##### Nominee

* Alex Mooney, former chairman of the Maryland Republican Party and former Maryland State Senator

##### Eliminated in primary

* Robert Fluharty, veteran, investigator and Eastern Panhandle resident
* Steve Harrison, state senator
* Charlotte Lane, former state delegate, former United States International Trade Commissioner and nominee for West Virginia Attorney General in 1996
* Jim Moss, Putnam County resident
* Ken Reed, pharmacy owner from Berkeley Springs
* Ron Walters Jr., son of State Delegate Ron Walters

##### Declined

* Tim Armstead, Minority Leader of the West Virginia House of Delegates
* Shelley Moore Capito, incumbent U.S. Representative (running for the U.S. Senate)
* Larry Faircloth, former state delegate (running for the state senate)
* Betty Ireland, former Secretary of State of West Virginia
* Patrick Lane, state delegate
* Bill Maloney, businessman and nominee for governor in 2011 and 2012
* Patrick Morrisey, Attorney General of West Virginia
* Eric Nelson, state delegate
* Suzette Raines, state delegate (running for the state senate)
* Charles Trump, attorney

#### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex Mooney | 12,678 | 36.0 |
| | Republican | Ken Reed | 7,848 | 22.3 |
| | Republican | Charlotte Lane | 6,358 | 18.1 |
| | Republican | Steve Harrison | 3,885 | 11.0 |
| | Republican | Ron Walters, Jr. | 2,125 | 6.0 |
| | Republican | Jim Moss | 1,684 | 4.8 |
| | Republican | Robert Fluharty | 621 | 1.8 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 35,199 | 100.0 |

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates
##### Nominee

* Nick Casey, former chairman of the West Virginia Democratic Party

##### Eliminated in primary

* Meshea Poore, state delegate

##### Declined

* Matt Dunn, attorney
* Steven Gower, Weston resident
* Doug Skaff, state delegate
* Herb Snyder, state senator
* Rod Snyder, president of the Young Democrats of America
* Erik Wells, state senator

#### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Nick Casey | 21,646 | 60.6 |
| | Democratic | Meshea Poore | 14,061 | 39.4 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 35,707 | 100.0 |

### General election
#### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Alex Mooney (R) | Nick Casey (D) | Other | Undecided |
| YouGov | October 16–23, 2014 | 348 | ± 7% | 45% | 44% | – | 11% |
| Public Opinion Strategies* | August 10–12, 2014 | 400 | ± 4.9% | 40% | 28% | 13% | 19% |
| Tarrance Group (R-Mooney) | May 20–22, 2014 | 400 | ± 4.9% | 43% | 31% | 15% | 11% |

#### Results

West Virginia's 2nd congressional district, 2014 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Alex X. Mooney | 72,619 | 47.1 |
| | Democratic | Nick Casey | 67,687 | 43.9 |
| | Libertarian | Davy Jones | 7,682 | 5.0 |
| | Independent | Ed Rabel | 6,250 | 4.0 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 154,238 | 100.0 |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

## District 3

Incumbent Democrat Nick Rahall, who had represented the district since 1977, ran for re-election after having considered running for the Senate.

### Democratic primary
#### Candidates
##### Nominee

* Nick Rahall, incumbent U.S. Representative

##### Eliminated in primary

* Richard Ojeda, veteran

#### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Nick Rahall (incumbent) | 37,176 | 66.4 |
| | Democratic | Richard Ojeda | 18,767 | 33.6 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 55,943 | 100.0 |

### Republican primary

For the Republicans, State Senator Evan Jenkins, who switched parties in July 2013, ran for the seat against Rahall. On switching parties, Jenkins stated that: "West Virginia is under attack from Barack Obama and a Democratic Party that our parents and grandparents would not recognize." In 2012, West Virginia's 3rd district went for Mitt Romney 66-32 percent.
State Senator Bill Cole, who had considered a run for the seat himself, was Jenkins' campaign chairman.

#### Candidates
##### Nominee

* Evan Jenkins, state senator

##### Declined

* Bill Cole, state senator
* Rick Snuffer, state delegate and nominee for this seat in 2004 & 2012

#### Results

Jenkins ran unopposed in the Republican primary.
Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Evan Jenkins | 14,374 | 100.0 |

### General election
#### Campaign

Rahall was considered one of the most "endangered" House Democrats by the House Democratic campaign committee.
Jenkins supported the repeal of Obamacare and pledged to replace it.
As of September 18, 2014, the race was rated a "toss up" by both University of Virginia political professor Larry Sabato, of Sabato's Crystal Ball, and Stu Rothenberg of the Rothenberg Political Report. As of October 2, managing editor Kyle Kondik of Sabato's Crystal Ball said the race was still a toss-up, calling it "Super close, super expensive and super nasty."
A Fox News op-ed opined in October that Jenkins "offers Republicans the most credible nominee the party has had since the mid-'90s. In a race that will see as much advertising by third-party organizations as any House race in the country, the winner will be the candidate who voters believe will do the most to take on President Obama's War on Coal and the EPA."
Through October 6, 2014, 16,340 ads had appeared on broadcast television, the second-highest number of ads of any district in the U.S. By mid-October 2014, it was anticipated that $12.8 million could be spent on ads in the race by Election Day. Rahall outspent Jenkins in the election by a two-to-one ratio.
Time listed a Rahall ad in its article: "Here Are 5 of The Most Dishonest Political Ads of 2014," and The Washington Post ran an article regarding the same Rahall ad entitled: "A sleazy attack puts words in the other candidate's mouth".

#### Endorsements

Rahall was endorsed by the NRA Political Victory Fund.
The National Right to Life Committee, West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, and West Virginians for Life, all of which had previously supported Rahall, supported Jenkins in 2014, and the West Virginia Coal Association endorsed Jenkins in September 2014.

#### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Nick Rahall (D) | Evan Jenkins (R) | Undecided |
| YouGov | October 16–23, 2014 | 253 | ± 10% | 45% | 50% | 5% |
| Harper Polling | October 7–8, 2014 | 657 | ± 3.82% | 44% | 50% | 6% |
| Garin-Hart-Yang Research | May 26–28, 2014 | 403 | ± 5% | 52% | 39% | 9% |
| Anzalone Liszt Grove Research (D-Rahall) | May 12–14, 2014 | 502 | ± 4.4% | 52% | 39% | 9% |
| DFM Research | April 22–27, 2014 | 400 | ± 4.9% | 48% | 39% | 13% |
| Garin-Hart-Yang Research | April 15–16, 2014 | 400 | ± 5% | 52% | 40% | 8% |
| Tarrance Group (R-Jenkins) | March 3–5, 2014 | 405 | ± 4.9% | 40% | 54% | 6% |
| Harper Polling (R-Jenkins) | October 7–8, 2013 | 649 | ± 3.84% | 46% | 42% | 12% |

#### Results

Jenkins won the election, defeating incumbent Rahall in November 2014 with 55.3% of the vote to Rahall's 44.7%.
West Virginia's 3rd congressional district, 2014 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Evan Jenkins | 77,713 | 55.3 |
| | Democratic | Nick Rahall (incumbent) | 62,688 | 44.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 140,401 | 100.0 |
| | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic |