By james art 
In the run-up to the general election, the approaches of the two West Virginia US Senate candidates were very different.
Republican Jim Justice, who has been the state’s governor for the past 8 years, hasn’t spent much time on the trail.
“The people of West Virginia know me and I don’t participate in campaign events. I’m not going to put up signs, this time I put up a few signs around Greenbrier County and they have a picture of Babydog on them and they say “vote for my dad.” That’s literally all I’ve done,” Justice said.
Meanwhile, former Wheeling Mayor and Democrat Glenn Elliott spent weeks visiting each of the state’s 55 counties to introduce himself to voters.
“We started on West Virginia Day in Welch, down in McDowell County, and we finish in Weirton here,” Elliott said. “This is our 55th district. It was amazing meeting people in their neighborhoods, we stopped by businesses, we had a lot of town halls, I think we had 12 town halls in these different counties. It was amazing to hear from West Virginians about the important issues that will come up this election year.
Justice announced his intention to run for the seat of the retiring Joe Manchin in April 2023.
During that time, Justice has seen problems with his business, including threats of foreclosure, loan defaults and court fines.
The justice said any action taken against his family or business was politically motivated.
As governor, Justice pushed for income tax cuts and invested millions of dollars in road repairs through the Roads to Prosperity program.
He says that if elected to the U.S. Senate, he would like to be involved in energy and natural resources.
“I’m best in a room full of finance people or energy people,” he said. “I really believe that energy drives the whole show. He does, he runs the whole show. This is the root of all this inflation. Absolutely, the energy runs the show and runs the show globally.”
On the other side of the race, Elliott signed paperwork to run for Manchin’s seat in January.
He recently completed two terms as mayor of Wheeling.
He touted the progress the Friendly City has seen during his years in office, including the multimillion-dollar streetscape project and new headquarters for both the police and fire departments.
Elliott says he’d like to help raise more money for issues like infrastructure, broadband and clean water, and he thinks he’s better suited than his opponent to do so.
“I can be in this Senate seat for a long time,” he said. “I modeled my service as a senator from working with Senator (Robert S. Byrd) and working with Senator Manchin, and I know exactly what it takes to be an effective senator. You have to build relationships across the aisle, you have to go out there and put in the work. You have to keep your head down and not do it for you, but for the people you represent.”
There is no love lost between the two candidates, only one of whom will move to Washington in January 2025.
“My challenge is to convince the rest of the state that the guy you see on TV coming up and saying, ‘Shit, look at my dog,’ is not the real guy I’m running against,” Elliott said. “We’re running against a very flawed person who doesn’t show up for work and doesn’t respect the political process.”
“I’m going to be extremely respectful and say he’s a good person and a good candidate,” Justice said. “It’s just that in this situation, I’m going to win, I’m going to win by walking away, so I don’t think it’s going to matter much.”