Think WV's Senate Seat Is Lost?

[Deep State Witch]

A little bit of Google-fu on my part has revealed a Democratic candidate declared last week. Zach Shrewsbury is a climate activist and former Marine. He looks and sounds a lot like John Fetterman. We all need to show his campaign some DU love!

https://www.shrewsburyforsenate.com/

[H2O Man]

1. Recommended.

Thank you.

[Deep State Witch]

3. You're Welcome!

[DFW]

2. I'm skeptical, but I'll follow this

I thought Fetterman was a lock, though, and WV is anything but. Still, anything is possible in politics. It's rare that people in solidly red states get tired of being lied to by Republicans, but stranger things have happened.

[jimfields33]

21. Nobody wanted Dr. Oz. They picked a horrible candidate. Fetterman is pennsyvania!

He’ll be in office as long as he wants.

[LymphocyteLover]

80. "It's rare that people in solidly red states get tired of being lied to by Republicans"

Ain't that the goddamn truth!

[Shrek]

138. Kansas is a red state

Governor Kelly is serving her second term. So it does happen.

[DFW]

140. Not to mention Sibelius before her

And West Virginia had a string of Democratic Senators (Randolph, Byrd, Rockefeller, e.g.), but it has tended in the wrong direction for while. Still, the right voice at the right time can always sound the right note, which is why I intend to keep an eye on this race instead of writing it off early.

[yardwork]

4. I wish him well but a climate activist is going to have a tough row in King Coal WV.

[nycbos]

57. Thank you.

[calguy]

5. A climate activist doesn't exactly strike me as someone who'd be popular in coal company

[Poiuyt]

29. Unless he wants to bring energy jobs to West Virginia

I'm sure the coal people are afraid of change, but if he can show that there's a pain free way to the future, he might have a chance.

[yardwork]

36. It's been tried over and over - the voters in WV rejected all offers.

Not just no, but hell no.

[Poiuyt]

51. That's kind of sad to hear

The coal lobby must be extremely strong there

[yardwork]

58. It's literally a tragedy, in the Ancient Greek sense.

West Virginia used to be a Democratic stronghold. It's beyond sad.

[Emile]

68. Not all are thrilled about mountain top removal.

[calguy]

73. This is true

but there aren't nearly enough of them to even begin to affect an election in that state. Manchin's Democratic votes in the Senate will be sorely missed, even if his positions on certain issues won't be.

[dutch777]

6. Don't quite see a climate activist popular in WV but Fetterman was a long shot too against alot of $$$. Fingers crossed

[gab13by13]

8. Fetterman was not a long shot

That narrative was pure propaganda.

[Think. Again.]

75. I suspect the Shrewsbury...

...being a longshot is also propaganda.

There simply aren't a lot of miners left in West Virginia, and voters there are catching on that Manchin was only fighting for his own small, family-owned scrap-coal business.

Therecs a LOT of poverty in WV now, people there realize they got screwed out of clean energy jobs and federal money by Manchin, and will probably welcome someone who is willing to try to go in that direction.

[CentralMass]

79. I hope you are right but the conventional wisdom is that Manchin was going to get beat by the republican.

It will be nothing short of a miracle if a Democrat, particularly one who is an environmentalist can win there.

[Think. Again.]

90. "Nothing short of a miracle"?

Really?

Edit; You're right, I checked, WV had a pretty high turn out for 2020 and voted for trump by almost 70%.

[yardwork]

97. I know WV pretty well, and it's about as deep a MAGA territory as you can imagine.

Rationally, one would think that voters there would have noticed that coal barons and Republicans have never given them anything - and one would think wrong. They cling to their guns, they watch Fox News, and they're not going to change their minds.

[treestar]

85. I know of someone who commuted to DC from WV

Suppose it was cheaper housing.
Is that unusual, or could it be a trend?
That would get some more liberal presence there, I would imagine.
And more working from home could get people wanting to live in rural states for the beauty and lack of crowds, and thus more liberals.

[yardwork]

96. There is a section of eastern WV that abuts MD, fairly close to DC.

The Hagerstown Frederick area of MD.

The thing about WV is that it has a fairly wide geographic spread, encompassing several ruby red regions. Part of WV shoots north along the Ohio PA border, extending north of Pittsburgh. And of course the KY border... it's just a whole bunch of Trump voters. Very sad.

[getagrip_already]

104. I heard 3700 active miners.....

Not a lot. But there are tens of thousands of mine worker families where mine lore is large even if no living family member works there any longer.

They just don't want to see the past disappear. They want to see it come it come back.

They are afraid of the future because the gop keeps telling them they will get run over by it.

And what passes for an education system reinforces all of that.

It would take a true populist to win. Someone who blames the mine owners and gop politicians for coals collapse with no alternative jobs. No safety controls. No Healthcare. No medicaid expansion. No minimum wage increase. No overtime protections. No wage theft protections.....

Leading with environment. Not so much. Find an ex mine worker. Someone who has been screwed over by the company. The state. The gop. Someone who can resonate with west Virginia's.

We may not like them. But if they vote with us when it counts, they are welcome to caucus with us.

[Think. Again.]

114. Good points...

...and Shrewsbury seems to fit that bill.

He doesn't appear to be "leading with the environment", it's just another of his strong stands that WVians should respond well to.

[Darwins_Retriever]

7. Lets see, a climate activist

in a state the relies on coal. Hmmmm, Wonder what his chances are.

[Celerity]

10. the square root of zero

[Celerity]

9. yes

[617Blue]

11. Gov. Jim Justice ain't exactly Abe Lincoln - he's also being challenged from the right

Thank you for this link.

[Deep State Witch]

18. You're Welcome

I mean, yeah, it's a long shot. But so was a Black guy from Chicago with an African name - and we all know how that turned out. This might be our chance to get a true Progressive into that seat.

The thing that I noticed about him is that he says right up front that he supports common sense gun laws, but doesn't want to take away guns.

[yardwork]

37. Most Democrats say that, but voters don't listen.

I hope he can get some traction, though.

[jaxexpat]

89. Reading down the comments was getting pretty depressing. (Seconal in the Wheaties?)

Glad to see yours break that trend. Since when has conventional wisdom been unerring and infallible? It's been a while now since coal jobs were the backbone of every W. Virginia community's economy. It requires substantially fewer personnel to take the top off a mountain than to mine coal seams through a shaft. Until just recently, WV's fastest growing industry was prescription opiates addiction with joblessness and hopelessness in a close race for second. Like so many states suffering a painful period of adaptation in the 40-year shift from agriculture and heavy industry to high tech-based economies, West Virginia is ripe for a change and the 2024 election could portend a tide that lifts all boats.

[Polybius]

112. Trump will get 70% of the vote in WV next year

In order for Zach Shrewsbury to beat Jim Justice, he'll have to have an unprecedented amount of massive crossover.

[MOMFUDSKI]

12. Dems have to put someone up that spouts

love for coal but doesn’t mean it. Someone young without much of a history on being climate friendly. Lie like a rethug would. That is the only chance we might have.

[Deep State Witch]

19. Just Look At His Platform

He's pro-Union, pro-Environmental Justice. Please don't write this guy off.

[GreenWave]

46. Many are sounding like Mansion.

I remember folks there being irate because Mansion didn't want them to have government help.

[appalachiablue]

65. Excellent, great catch! At the risk of bring mauled, Jk

Bernie did very well in the Mountain State and I don't think he's a fossil fuel fan.

[tavernier]

13. I've spent considerable time in Charleston West Virginia

And Democrat Robert Byrd was a very, beloved Senator of West Virginia, and still is to this day. His statues and name are all over that city.

[True Blue American]

50. This Guy?

[tavernier]

62. That is the man,

Every day that he was a senator he carried a copy of the constitution in his breast pocket and knew every word of it. The new republicans can’t spell Constitution.

[orleans]

72. maybe that's how this new dem should run... on a coattail or two of byrd's,

making references to him, and carrying a copy of the constitution in his pocket!

people love robert byrd so much-- they might love voting for someone who, in some ways, emulates byrd.

[True Blue American]

77. If he would learn to fiddle he would be a shoe in. Just joking here.

Byrd and Rockefeller were quite a team.

[msfiddlestix]

107. if a candidate was already a fiddler, that would be a lock! Lots of Progressive Old Time Fiddlers in WV

Singing these old time mountain songs like Cabin On the Hill, West Virginia You Are My home. Etc

Think i'll check in with Alice to see if she or one her band mates might want to toss their hat in.

Hazel Dickens singing her song she wrote :Coal Miners Grave

?feature=shared

[True Blue American]

74. Byrd also brought millions into WV!

So did Nelson Rockefeller. I have to laugh at people who downgrade WV people. They voted Democratic for years.

[CentralMass]

82. They Orange Anus got 68.5% of the vote in 2016 and 68.6% in 2020 in WV.

[tavernier]

83. So they said.

[Polybius]

113. Election denial?

[tavernier]

131. Nope.

Just agreeing.

[MyNameIsJonas]

129. Jay. Nelson was from New York.

[msfiddlestix]

101. Thee are actually a lot of Progressive Fiddlers , Banjo players aEnd other musicians in WV, actually.

I personally am acquainted with quite a few in the West Virginia Old Timey Music community.

ETA: And it wouldn't hurt a bit if a progressive ran for Senate that turned tout to be a Bluegrass or Old Time Fiddler!

Even Conservatives LOVE that music in WV,. And just maybe that's the thing that might just be enough for them to VOTE that candidate in.

[3catwoman3]

142. By damn, that was really good.

I love fiddle music.

[yardwork]

99. Byrd is beloved but his memory doesn't translate to supporting Democrats today.

[MyNameIsJonas]

130. People also assume Byrd, without the name or history, could get elected today.

West Virginia is a much different state than even when Jay Rockefeller won (he was originally a Republican but switched parties to run).

Byrd, without the name and the history, wouldn't stand much a chance there. West Virginia is more conservative today than ten years ago and ten years ago, it was more conservative than the ten years prior to that.

It's a state that has completely abandoned the Democratic Party.

People forget that in 2020, Democrats put up Paula Jean Swearengin, a Bernie delegate, liberal and environmentalist and she turned around and won 20% of the vote in the general.

That's likely what the Democrats will pull in this go around.

[yardwork]

133. That's been my observation as well.

[BannonsLiver]

14. The people want their coal overlord in the senate and that's what's going to happen.

[SayItLoud]

15. X's 100000000.nt

[ebbie15644]

16. Better off picking a

Pro labor coal minor

[mopinko]

17. arent the ppl of wv wondering what's next? what comes after coal?

coal isnt coming back, and only idiots think that. i think someone w a solid, workable economic plan for wv might have a chance.
pretty sure folks look around and see their damaged environment and wonder what could b done. restoration projects, esp on coal barron’s dime, wd sell, i think. clean up the coal ash pits. replant the hills. restore rivers choked w mining waste.

so, yeah, i think there’s a lane here.

[mountain grammy]

48. I hope so...

Beautiful state... there's still time brotha!

[EmmaLee E]

20. Right to abortion is a winning issue

all over the country.

[Mr.Bill]

22. What if he campaigned on

"Would you rather have your granchilden work in a union staffed solar panel factory or a coal mine?" If they answer "In a coal mine", I give up.

[brooklynite]

26. In 2016 Clinton said we should stop mining coal and retrain the workers for new energy jobs...

In 2016 Trump said we should keep the mines open.

Who won West Virginia?

[W_HAMILTON]

38. The one that sat by and watched as the total number of coal workers decreased by about 25% during their term...

...and didn't retrain the workers that lost their jobs for other energy jobs where employment was increasing -- and yet they still voted for him again when he was up for reelection in 2020.

[bluestarone]

39. As far as i'm concerned

Clinton was 100% right!

[Marthe48]

34. My husband was born in WV

All of his uncles who worked in the mines said they didn't want their kids working in the mines. Almost all of the extended family left WV. None of the cousins who stayed work in a mine.
I think what matters most to WV voters is gun ownership, based on what family members and people said to my husband over the years.
This is the state that gave us Chuck Yeager and Homer Hickam. Let's avoid stereotyping.

[Mr.Bill]

35. That's good to hear. I wasn't meaning to stereotype anyone.

I was just speaking about Manchin being so devoted to the coal industry, and how an environmentalist can run against a republican who also supports the coal industry.

[Marthe48]

55. I'm sorry didn't mean to single you out

The people I knew in WV were nice, reasonable, but like every other place in the U.S. the personality of the state has changed. I think it makes it easier to forget the diversity in America. I can't of any West Virginians I know in the state or elsewhere who think much of manchin. But his uncle was governor and maybe they vote for whose familiar. Maybe Mr. Shrewsbury will be the one

[Maggiemayhem]

54. WV primaried John Kennedy

[True Blue American]

60. The state also gave us Nelson

Rockefeller and Robert Byrd for years.

[yellowdogintexas]

69. Jay Rockefeller. Nelson was New York nt

[shrike3]

64. Thanks for the perspective. WV is a staggeringly beautiful state.

[Think. Again.]

91. It is absolutely beautiful there.

[Kid Berwyn]

23. Absolutely, Deep State Witch!

“Make no mistake. West Virginia’s current delegation harms everyone in the United States with MAGA extremism.” -- Zachary Shrewsbury



Zachary Shrewsbury is a dedicated Marine Corps Veteran who served with distinction as a member of the Fleet Anti Terrorism Security Team (FAST). Drawing upon his unwavering commitment to duty and motivated by his profound belief in the resilience and potential of the people of his state, Zach contemplates a future in politics, driven by his genuine desire to be a representative who truly listens and advocates for the diverse voices and needs of his community. As Zach transitioned into civilian life he became a loving father and a devoted advocate for working class families.

https://www.shrewsburyexploratorycommittee.com/

Oorah!

[mahina]

24. Video

?si=6zTan7XplGJuiWg0

His website needs a few YouTube clips, less video that have no sound. And less Manchin, suddenly.

[True Blue American]

87. He may be the reason Manchin decided to retire.

Manchin only received 49% of the vote in the last election and his constant reluctance to help Democrats get bills passed. He finally came around and was on the makeshift stage when Biden signed one bill.

Rob Portman was there for the infrastructure bill.

[mahina]

137. Maybe but i bet the protestors in kayaks at his yacht

Played a part.
I doubt this guy played a role. He was going to lose to the republican anyway right?

[FBaggins]

25. Yes - it is now an entirely safe red seat

If we lose by fewer than 20 points it will be a surprise.

Normally... I'd be all for getting behind whoever we put up in a race... but there are seven or eight other senate races that we can't afford to lose that will be competitive (and many more that will not be competitive, but will be more so than this one).

IOW - any funds are better spent elsewhere.

[Lovie777]

27. Are there Big Foots in them woods?............................

[True Blue American]

76. No!Bigfoot lives close to Indian Lake, Ohio down by the railroads. Drunks told their wives

Why they were late coming home from the bars at LakeView they were looking for BigFoot!! My Mother and stepfather retired there so I can verify this story. I checked every time I crossed the tracks.

BTW, hired BY Henry Ford to haul his cars when he bought the DT&I RR my Grandfather worked there for 50 years.

[yardwork]

98. West Virginia has the moth men.

[Salviati]

28. Thanks. We may not win everywhere, but we should run everywhere.

Letting certain regions fester with republicans running wild is part of why we're in this mess.

We should spend our money wisely, but part of that wisdom is to always have someone to spread our message, and always have someone ready to pounce on unexpected opportunities.

[PortTack]

30. Thx for posting! We need to support him....even if he isn't favored to win

Last edited Fri Nov 10, 2023, 05:25 PM - Edit history (1)

Two reasons
We should never let a puke candidate no matter how favored to run unchallenged
It takes a lot of push to get up every day and campaign in a deep red area knowing that you will probably lose.

[relayerbob]

31. Georgia took TWO Senate seats for D

So, anyone saying this isn't possible, isn't paying attention. Thanks for the heads up!

[Deep State Witch]

40. You're welcome!

I live in Maryland, where we also have an open Senate seat. (Go Angela!) But, I've sent $30 to Mr. Shrewsbury. Maybe because I like hopeless cases, but he was primarying Manchin. We can't just rely on blue states anymore. There are lots of people in "red" states that are fed up with the Repukes, too.

[appalachiablue]

67. +1

[doubleplusgood]

93. "We have to fight them there"

(In the red states) “so we don’t have to fight them here”.

[Polybius]

115. Trump got over 68% of the vote in WV, twice

Trump lost Georgia in 2020. Georgia is not West Virginia.

[relayerbob]

120. So? He took GA in 2016

Times change, and you have to work hard and compete to win.

But feel free to surrender the country to nutjobs.

[Polybius]

122. Meh, in 2016 he beat Hillary 50.38% to 45.29% (about 5 points)

In WV, he beat her 68.50% 26.43% (by 42 points). Massive difference.

[relayerbob]

132. No wonder the flyover states don't like Dems

[brooklynite]

117. Georgia is an R+3 State. West Virginia is R+35.

Do you see the difference?

[relayerbob]

119. OF COURSE I DO!!! WTF???

We didn't always used to be that way, so get to work and stop with the BS smartass answers.

[MistakenLamb]

32. yep

Tester and Brown are in better positions than lighting a pile of money on fire in WV

[MorbidButterflyTat]

33. Thanks for this info!

I'm tired of the gloom and doom defeatist attitudes, especially after Tuesday's victories for Dems.

[tritsofme]

41. This feels like the equivalent of Republicans trying to convince themselves they can win California.

[Deep State Witch]

42. Or that Abortion Rights

Can't win in Ohio or Kansas. Or that a Dem governor can't win in Kentucky.

[elocs]

43. Yes. Manchin is the only statewide elected Democrat in very red West Virginia.

I'd save the DU love for a Democratic candidate that actually has a chance of winning.

[True Blue American]

78. History of WV!

Sorry, but they had 2 Democratic Senators for a long time.
Jay Rockefeller, as I was corrected above, not Nelson and Robert Byrd. Byrd served until he died. That is how much voters loved him.

And Manchin was elected as a Democrat!!

[elocs]

136. The key word in your post in "had". Lots of southern states "had" Democratic senators as well.

It's not happening again anytime soon.

[Maru Kitteh]

44. Worth watching but I will need to conserve my limited resources till viability is demonstrated.

Most of my monetary contributions will need to follow this path unfortunately.

[Earthrise]

45. We can support Shrewsbury and see where it goes, but Justice is a shoo-in. Never underestimate BABYDOG

... or Jim Justice - who the New York Times called a Republican-turned-Democrat-turned-Republican governor. He is in touch with reality, not MAGA, and *not* someone who is in it only for the wealthy and powerful.

Governor Justice Introduces Babydog the Bulldog at State of the State Address
West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) introduces his bulldog, Babydog, at the end of his State of the State address.
https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4999293/governor-justice-introduces-babydog-bulldog-state-state-address

Do It for Babydog - COVID vaccination program, getting vaccinated meant you won an opportunity to win a scholarship for your child/your self
https://doitforbabydog.wv.gov/

Big Jim and Babydog Go to Washington
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/15/us/jim-justice-senate-governor-west-virginia.html

"Mr. Justice, a debt-ridden coal magnate, and Republican-turned-Democrat-turned-Republican governor, could soon play a decisive role in the country’s direction."
“Come on, girl,” he cooed. An English bulldog the governor has described as a “60-pound brown watermelon” plopped out of the Suburban to a sprinkling of warm applause. Elsewhere in the state, critical functions — foster care, prisons, the flagship public university — were buckling under financial strain and staffing shortages. Here, all eyes were on Babydog, hoisted by the captain of the governor’s security detail into the camp chair set up, as always, right beside the governor."

[lees1975]

47. I'm the son of native West Virginians who moved out of the state

because even back then, in 1954, the population was declining, coal jobs were declining, and my Dad, a WW2 Navy vet, with a degree in chemistry from WVU, looked at his cousins, working in a carbon plant, exposed to black lung, and barely making it wage-wise, saw no future there, and moved to Arizona.

The county where they lived supported Trump in 2016 67%-31%. Since then, the carbon plant closed, as the mines slowly ran out of coal and shut down. They've lost all but about 10% of their remaining jobs. The population of the county, which has declined every year since 1950, has dropped from 47,000 to 23,000 and it dropped 12% since 2016. The county seat has gone from 8,500 at its peak to just 3,000. The only hospital and emergency room in the county closed in 2020. The local school districts, for self-preservation and to save money, consolidated five high schools into one a few years back.

That's not an isolated story. You'll find that in most of the surrounding counties there, many of them worse off. It's a set up for a Democratic candidate, with Democratic values and a Democratic party agenda, to win big. West Virginia's other Senator, Shelly Moore-Capito, the daughter of a former governor, Archie Moore, who knew how to throw economic bones to get votes, is a do-nothing elitist who managed to win office on Republican social issues and has yet to come up with legislation to benefit the state.

So I think the right Democrat can play this political mix, penetrate what is stultifying political ignorance and media control, and win this seat, keeping it out of Republican hands. Of all states where a woman's right to choose is a necessity, it's West Virginia.

BTW, that hospital that closed is now re-opening in stages, thanks to the help of the Biden Adminisration, which worked with a local medical practice to help them purchase the facility and give it a $12 million upgrade. They're opening in stages, I think the ER is open now, and lab services are available, along with acute patient care. 80 jobs created.

[mzmolly]

49. Donated

Thank you!!

[Brenda]

52. Go Zach!

It bothers me somewhat that we have to rely on the "military vet" cred to get anywhere in these states but if that's what it takes to open the door for these people to see they've been lied to and swindled by the repubs, I'm for it.

[twodogsbarking]

53. The people of WV need help. Give them someone who will try.

[nycbos]

56. The person who ran against Marjorie Taylor Greene in the third most Republican district in the country...

... Raise my tens of millions of dollars and good-natured grassroots people donating to him, believing his BS thinking he was going to win. There are some races that are unwinnable. Jon Tester needs our help. Lucas Kuance has an outside chance to flip Missouri donate to him.

[TexasDem69]

59. Gone

Like the snows of yesteryear

[Mountainguy]

61. It's not a long-shot

It's a no-shot

Spend money in places where it might help. This guy has a better chance to be elected President of the Moon than to Senate from WV.

[58Sunliner]

63. Good to know, thanks.

[Pototan]

66. No chance

there is no state in America in which more people vote against their own best interests than West Virginia.

[Polybius]

118. Perhaps it is their interests

Every one from WV that I've met seems to hate affirmative action, legal abortions, trans rights, and immigrants, while they love coal and guns while going to church on Sundays.

[Pototan]

135. I noticed that education and health care are not on your list

kinda of important items to stay out of poverty.

Did you know that they invented the toothbrush in WV?

Ya, that's why the device is singular, "tooth".

[hurl]

70. Happy to support this candidate

I totally think WV's Senate Seat is hopelessly lost, but that doesn't mean I don't want someone to bother to show up and run. Having an alternative is important, even if we know the outcome for now. We'll keep losing until we don't, and we have no idea when that could be, so having an alternative is important even when we don't think we stand a chance.

I'm happy to support Shrewsbury even while being convinced he hasn't a chance. Showing up is a minimum to at least demonstrate there's an alternative.

I also live in a red state that many write off, but I retain hope that things can turn around if we can somehow tap the non-voters. GOP has little shot for those votes, but we have the gravitas to maybe get some of them. With right-wingers dying off with COVID and whatever else, at some point, it will be enough. We need someone in place for whenever that could be.

[NBachers]

71. Donated

[jmowreader]

81. We're facing a "what will we do if we have no farm?" problem

This comes from a family history book I typeset for a customer a few decades ago.

The man's grandparents owned a farm and were going bankrupt from it. To save themselves, the husband went into town and found a good job. Then he sold the farm to his neighbor, who wanted it to expand his own farm, and used the proceeds to buy a decent house inside the city limits. Finally, he went back to his wife and explained what he had done.

His wife's first words were, "pa, what are we gonna do if we ain't got no farm?" She'd grown up on a farm, married a farmer, lived on a farm all her life, and couldn't imagine any other kind of life. Well...after she finally got moved to town and started keeping house there, she realized you could have a better life if you "ain't got no farm."

Applied to West Virginia: the people there understand coal is dead. Coal mining is historically a low-paying industry. No one's buying the coal they mine, there are tons of industries who could move to WV and totally revitalize the place, and very few miners want their own children to mine coal. But you tell these guys, "we will bring in new industries, close those dead mines and vastly improve your standard of living..."pa, what are we gonna do if we ain't got no coal mines?"

[BlueMTexpat]

84. Thanks for posting this!

Having looked up a couple other links (some paywalled, unfortunately) since I saw your post, this guy could actually be what WV Dems need!

Check out this article that he wrote in Jan 2022: https://www.wvgazettemail.com/opinion/op_ed_commentaries/zachary-shrewsbury-jan-6-an-opportunity-within-a-crisis-opinion/article_a8732986-9679-5fbf-8595-223d4d61205f.html

I especially liked this description of him from the bottom of that link:

Zachary Shrewsbury, of Fayetteville, served five years in the U.S. Marine Corps infantry. In 2015, after serving on active duty, he began working on political campaigns from Seattle to West Virginia. He has organized rallies and town halls to engage local communities that are often forgotten within both political parties.

He has the Howard Dean mentality, IMO. That is exactly what Dems need in a state like WV.

Here's a great article from two days ago: https://woay.com/zach-shrewsbury-tackles-plight-of-west-virginia/

From the link:

...
“Manchin, Jim justice, what have you, no longer represent us — they represent themselves at the end of the day,” the candidate said no-one’s talking about the need for actual healthcare in West Virginia. No one’s actually talking about tackling the addiction crisis. “They show up at election time. They haven’t been in the community like I’ve been for years talking to people.”

According to Shrewsbury, it absolutely will be a tough uphill battle but one he’s taking on nonetheless.

“People have to choose between groceries and rent. I’m screaming at the top of my lungs; we can’t live like this any longer,” he said. “Working class people can no longer do this.”
We are at a breaking point in this country.

“People can’t afford to go to the hospital. You have to go into debt just to ride in an ambulance,” said the Marine Corps veteran. “You have to choose putting your kid in daycare, which you can’t afford to do or choose a job that’s probably an hour away, with the gas prices the way they are. So if you’re poor the system’s stacked against you and that’s not fair.”
...

National Dems had better help him out BIG-TIME! What is there to lose?

[Zambero]

86. No GOP-leaning race should go unchallenged

The Democratic Party needs to maintain a visible presence in all 50 states. In time, candidates will emerge who surprise nay-sayers. Witness Beshear in Kentucky. At this point, WV is certainly a long shot, and limited resources need to be directed to closely competitive races. However, pulling up stakes and entirely abandoning certain states or regions puts us at a long-term disadvantage. Good candidates with effective messaging may not always win, but they will serve to provide a degree of familiarity and issue-related legitimacy for the party that will be beneficial for future Democratic candidates.

[brooklynite]

88. Andy Beshear didn't suprise people...

Last edited Sat Nov 11, 2023, 12:24 PM - Edit history (1)

He was the son of a very popular Governor, and the Republican was a very UNPOPULAR governor.

"No race should go unchallenged" is a nice abstract concept, but if the Democrat is going to to go out of State for funding, he/she is going to find a lot of prospective donors doing a reality check of which races are winnable and which are not.,

[Think. Again.]

92. I'm going to donate to Shrewsbury...

...I know people will think it's a waste since he's the under-dog, but unless we support the good guys wherever they are, we will just be giving up little by little.

[brooklynite]

95. But which "good guy" are you NOT supporting?

The reason I don't endorse contributing to feel-good races like this is that there are dozens of good candidates who DO have a chance to win who ALSO need money. That's why I don months of data analysis to identify the races it makes the most sense to support.

[Think. Again.]

111. If they have a better chance of winning...

...don't they need our support less than those face a tough race?

We need to win every race we are in.

[brooklynite]

116. My argument is that you don't NEED money if your race is hopeless...

The modeling I do requires a minimal level of competitiveness. An R+35 State is not going to vote for an unknown Democrat, and no booklet of grassroots money is going to change that.

Our goal is NOT to "win West Virginia". It's to HOLD the Senate, which means defending Brown and Tester, and to WIN the House, which means picking up 5 toss-up Republican seats and protecting 13 toss-up Democratic seats. A dollar given to a hopeless cause like WV-Senate is a dollar not give to a race we NEED to win.

[Think. Again.]

121. But having campaign money is what makes your race NOT hopeless.

Edit to add;

I made a donation, I sincerely wish Shrewsbury (and all good under-dogs) the best!

[brooklynite]

123. No it isn't.

Having a competitive State/District AND having a quality candidate AND having a vulnerable opponent AND having money is needed.

[Think. Again.]

124. Well, it seems to me...

...that your method of "months of analysis" to figure out which Democratic candidates to not support may be the wrong approach.

[brooklynite]

125. You misunderstand my approach

My model runs to 7 pages and tracks EVERY minimally competitive House, Senate, Governor, AG, Sec of State. Supreme Court and State Legislature race. The goal is to rank every race and identify the most competitive races (NOT the easiest to win and NOT the long shots).

[Think. Again.]

126. I see...

...I take the approach of supporting people I think is the best candidate for the position in any race.

[brooklynite]

127. But you don't...

...in that, unless you have unlimited funds, you're choosing which races to support and which not to, regardless of the candidates.

Add to which, one thing I never do is choose among Democratic candidates in Primaries (unless I'm voting for them).

[Zambero]

103. Exactly

If we become irrelevant at any given place or time, it will be of our own choosing.

[yardwork]

102. And, Beshear has been a popular governor.

I was relieved that he was re-elected, but it wasn't a big surprise. Some commenters here seem to think he was newly elected just now.

[Zambero]

105. Perhaps anomaly is a better term

The Democratic party has been losing ground steadily in southern and border states for decades. In some instances, we'll pick up a Senate seat (Alabama) or governorship (Louisiana) only to see it slip away. Formerly purple Florida is now a basket case statewide although some recent mayoral wins raise a glimmer of hope. We did narrowly win two Senate seats in Georgia, but with some unwitting bumbling help from TFG. Texas? A mirage of sorts falling just short of the mark. Missouri? Arkansas? Iowa to the north? They seem lost. Or are they? Beshear stands out not only as a Democrat who can not only win in a red state but as one who manages to repeat that success. Throwing in the towel in places where success seems to evade Democrats only reinforces the notion that the party no longer matters. Politics, like everything else, evolves over time, and one key survival aspect along those lines is to do everything possible to preclude becoming extinct.

[brooklynite]

109. People need to distinguish between Senators and Governors

Senators are one of 100 away in Washington. Voters rarely know what they do individually, and are inclined to vote based on national issues and Party loyalty. Governors are in-State and have a must greater impact on their voters. There are a lot of States that will elect a Dem Governor but would never think of electing a Dem Senator in this political environment.

[yardwork]

128. Why NC often has Democratic governors and almost never D senators.

[Butterflylady]

94. Will do, 😊

[brooklynite]

100. Here's the irony of this Ken Shrewsbury boomlet.....

West Virginia is the 2nd most Republican leaning State (R+22). There are Senate races in Indiana,, Mississippi, North Dakota, Nebraska, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming with equally hopeless candidates on the Dermocratic side. The only reason Shrewsbury is getting any attention is because this is considered a "Democratic seat" even though everyone hates the Democrat.

[riversedge]

106. Goodness. He is a big man......

Hope he has some good ideas for WV.


https://www.shrewsburyforsenate.com/

[BlueSky3]

108. Thanks for this. Just

made a contribution.

[Polybius]

110. The problem is that Jim Justice is running

He's immensely popular. He's not going to lose.

[doc03]

134. The best bet would be finding a billionaire coal baron that would run

as a Republican to the far right of Justice in the primary. Then after winning switch
parties like Justice did.

[The Grand Illuminist]

139. There may be a microbe of hope, but hope nonetheless.

There is a WV House delegate named Barbara Evans Fleischauer. She is a real expert in constitutional law and would do really well in the senate. She is very popular in the college towns that could give us the advantage.

[ecstatic]

141. They have a total abortion ban. We can definitely win there if we're smart about it

On September 13, 2022, West Virginia began enforcing its total ban on abortion, which prohibits abortion at all stages of pregnancy, except in the case of a “nonmedically viable fetus”, ectopic pregnancy, or medical emergency. Survivors and victims of rape and incest can obtain abortions up to eight weeks of gestation, but only if they report to law enforcement first.

https://reproductiverights.org/maps/state/west-virginia/

Planning and strategizing should be happening now. Is anyone working on it? DNC?