Ben Salango

Ben Salango is a West Virginia attorney, small business owner, and politician. He currently serves as a Kanawha County Commissioner.
Salango grew up in a two bedroom trailer in Raleigh County, West Virginia with his parents and three siblings. He attended West Virginia University|West Virginia University, and graduated in 1994 with his Bachelors Degree. He earned his Juris Doctor|Juris Doctorate from Wvu law|WVU College of Law in 1998.
After Commissioner Dave Hardy was appointed to Jim Justice's cabinet as Revenue Secretary, Salango was appointed to the Kanawha County Commission by Commission President Kent Carper and Commissioner Hoppy Shores.
Salango was re-elected to the commission on November 6th, 2018 to serve the remainder of the term, which is on the ballot again in 2022. He has not confirmed if he is running for re-election in 2022.
Since joining the commission, Salango has spearheaded multiple significant programs for the county including building the Shawnee Sports Complex, creating a program to help small business owners succeed, and giving all county employees 12 weeks of paid family leave.
Shortly after joining the commission, Commissioner Salango proposed building a youth sports complex in Dunbar, WV. Commissioners approved a study to be conducted on the economic impact of a youth sports complex. Then a series of soil, air, and water quality tests were performed by Dow Chemical Company after chemicals were found below West Virginia State University campus, which is next to the site for the sports complex. Results were announced at a commission meeting with independent evaluations concluding that there were no health risks posed by building the sports complex at Shawnee Park. Multiple public hearings were held for the public to discuss the benefits and disadvantages of building the sports complex, while the proposed plan enjoyed general public support. 
On July 10th 2018, Salango - joined by his fellow Commissioners - officially cut the ribbon on the Shawnee Sports Complex. The sports complex provides facilities for a variety of sports including soccer, baseball, and softball.
As of 2020, the Shawnee Sports Complex had hosted many competitions including the US Youth Soccer National Tournaments along with players from across the nation. The sports complex continues to generate millions of dollars each year for the metro valley.
In March of 2019 the Kanawha County Commission approved and announced a program led by Commissioner Salango to support new and expanding entrepreneurs in the Upper Kanawha Valley. The Upper Kanawha Assistance Program offers up to $10,000 of forgivable loans to applicants with 25 or fewer employees seeking to start or expand a business in the Upper Kanawha Valley, which includes the communities of Belle, Cabin Creek, Campbell's Creek, Cedar Grove, Chelyan, Chesapeake, Dupont City, East Bank, Glasgow, Handley, London, Malden, Marmet, Montgomery, Pratt, Rand, Smithers. Applicants must allow an audit of their business and submit a business plan to the commission to receive the loan, and the loan is forgiven after continuous operation of the venture for 2 year. 
As of 2020, Salango has presented UKAN loans to entrepreneurs of book stores, transportation companies, auto repair shops, construction companies, bakeries, and pizza shops.
In January of 2020, Commissioner Salango proposed and led discussion with fellow Commissioners to provide 12 weeks of paid family leave to county employees. The previous policy allowed for county employees to take up to 12 weeks of leave unpaid, but Salango's proposition would allow new parents (or grandparents with primary guardianship) to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave. The proposed policy passed, making Kanawha County the first county in West Virginia to pass 12 weeks of paid family leave. 
==Salango Law, PLLC==
Ben Salango has practiced law since 1998. He is the founding member of Salango Law, PLLC in downtown Charleston, West Virginia. His law firm has successfully settled multimillion dollar cases across the country including settlements for workplace death (10.8 million), workplace injury (2 million), commercial trucking accident (4.4 million), and failure to diagnose (2.85 million).
The law firm has been the recipient of multiple awards and favorable rankings including Tier 1 for Medical Malpractice Law and Personal Injury Litigation (U.S. News & World Report|US News).
Among his peers, Salango has also earned numerous awards for exceptional work including Lawyers and Leaders Award from WVU College of Law, Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers in America, and a superb 10.0 rating in the Avvo Legal Directory.
Salango Law, PLLC has also contributed to the community through pro-bono work and sponsorship of a "Sensitive Santa" event for children with special needs.
==Gubernatorial Race of 2020==
On October 10th, 2019 outside the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center in Charleston, WV, Commissioner Salango announced his candidacy for Governor. 
==Primary Election==
In the primary election, Salango faced State Senator Ron Stollings, community organizer Stephen Smith, Jody Murphy, and Douglas Hughes to be the Democratic Candidate for Governor.
Governor Jim Justice and Secretary of State Mac Warner moved the Primary Election in West Virginia to June 9th, 2020 one month after the originally scheduled primary. On June 9th, 2020 the West Virginia imary election was held. The contest was close between Salango and Smith, who had announced nearly two years before the general election would happen, but Salango won with 38.74% of the vote and significant margins in Kanawha and surrounding counties.
==General Election==
In the general election, Salango faced incumbent Governor Jim Justice, attorney Erika Kolenich, and environmental activity Danny Lutz.
The general election was held on November 3rd, 2020, with Justice taking nearly 65% of the vote while Salango took a little over 30%.
* Actress and West Virginia native Jennifer Garner
* US Senator Joe Manchin
* Former WV Governors Earl Ray Tomblin, Bob Wise, and Gaston Caperton
*United Mine Workers of America
*WV Working Families Party
*Charleston Gazette-Mail
Commissioner Salango is married to Tera Salango, a Kanawha County judge, and they live in Charleston, WV with their two sons and three dogs.
In his free time, Salango enjoys coaching soccer and climbing mountains. He has reached the peaks of mountains across the world including Mount Rainier and Mount Kilimanjaro.
==References==
==External Links==
* Salango Law website
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Category:American politicians
Category:American businesspeople
Category:American lawyers