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Earl Ray Tomblin

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Earl Ray Tomblin
Tomblin.jpg
Governor of West Virginia
Incumbent
In office
November 15, 2010 - Present
Term ends
2017
Years in position 3
PartyDemocratic
PredecessorJoe Manchin (D)
Compensation
Base salary$150,000
Elections and appointments
Last electionNovember 6, 2012
First electedOctober 4, 2011
Next electionNovember 8, 2016
Campaign $$8,670,849
Term limitsN/A
Prior offices
West Virginia State Senate
1980 - November 15, 2010
West Virginia House of Delegates
1974 - 1980
Education
High schoolChapmanville High School (1970)
Bachelor'sWest Virginia University
Master'sMarshall University
Personal
BirthdayMarch 15, 1952
Place of birthLogan County, West Virginia
Websites
Office website
Personal website
Campaign website

Contents

Earl Ray Tomblin (b. March 15, 1952 in Logan County, West Virginia) is the 35th and current Governor of West Virginia. A Democrat, he first assumed the office of acting governor by virtue of his role as President of the West Virginia State Senate in January 2010, and was elected on October 4, 2011 to serve the remainder of former governor Joe Manchin's unexpired term.[1] He won a full, 4 year term in the 2012 elections.

Before being elected governor, Tomblin had been a state legislator for 36 years. He served in the state Senate from 1980 to 2010, representing the 7th district. Tomblin was the longest serving senate president in West Virginia history, having been elected to the position 18 straight years. Prior to that he served in the House of Delegates from 1974-1980.[2]

Biography

Tomblin was born on March 15, 1952 in Logan County, WV. Growing up, he and his family lived above a Chapmanville restaurant his parents owned. He worked in the restaurant busing tables before attending West Virginia University, where he earned a a bachelor of science degree.

Education

  • Chapmanville High School, 1970
  • BS, Business management, West Virginia University
  • MBA, Marshall University

Political career

Governor of West Virginia (2010-Present)

Tomblin was sworn in as Acting Governor on November 16, 2010.[3] He became the interim Governor of West Virginia when current Governor Joe Manchin resigned to fill the United States Senate seat of the late Senator Robert C. Byrd.


Tomblin's plans as acting governor

On November 8, 2010, Tomblin announced that he would act as both acting governor of West Virginia and senate president, while turning over the day-to-day running of the senate to Senate Pro Tempore Joe Minard (D-Harrison). “Our Constitution and our laws contemplate a clear and organized transfer of power,” said Tomblin. “The Constitution states that, when a vacancy arises in the offices of governor, the senate president shall act as governor until a vacancy is filled. Throughout my tenure as Senate President, I have always been mindful of this responsibility.”[4]

Judicial appointments

As governor, Tomblin is responsible for appointing judges to West Virginia state courts. In West Virginia, the governor makes a judicial appointment to fill a vacancy. The judge serves the remainder of the unexpired term. For an up-to-date list of all of Tomblin's appointees, see Judgepedia's page on his appointments.

Medicaid expansion

In early May 2013, Tomblin announced West Virginia would expand Medicaid coverage, an option under the 2010 federal Affordable Care Act. Under the plan approximately 91,500 additional state residents would become eligible for insurance coverage. Tomblin became the 27th governor to agree to the expansion.[5] He said he based his decision on the financial analysis which showed the first decade of expansion would cost the state under $400 million, but bring in over $5 billion in federal funding.[6]

Supreme Court ruling

In early 2011, a Supreme Court battle ensued about when to elect the next Governor of West Virginia. Citizen Action Group and local attorney Thorton Cooper said the state Constitution and state code disagree, and a special election for governor should be called quickly. Attorneys for Acting Gov. Tomblin and House Speaker Richard Thompson disagreed whether an election should be called. Secretary of State Natalie Tennant‘s legal counsel took a neutral position.

Kathryn Bayless, counsel for CAG, said only the court could require the Legislature and Tomblin to act, and that an election is needed as soon as possible. Bayless argued that article 7 section 16 of the Constitution is clear there “shall” be a “new” election for governor in event of an absence. “The people of West Virginia want a new election, and that is what the Constitution provides for,” Bayless said.

West Virginia State Senate (1980-2011)

Tomblin was first elected to the West Virginia State Senate in 1980. He served as Senate President from 1995-2011.

Committee assignments

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Tomblin served on these committees:

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Tomblin served on these committees:

West Virginia House of Delegates (1974-1980)

Prior to serving in the state senate, Tomblin was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates in 1974, and then re-elected in 1976 and 1978.

Elections

2012

See also: West Virginia gubernatorial election, 2012 and West Virginia state executive official elections, 2012

Tomblin won election to a full term as governor in 2012. He defeated Arnie Moltis in the Democratic primary on May 8, 2012 and defeated Bill Maloney in the November 6, 2012 general election.[7][8]

Governor of West Virginia General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark.jpgEarl Ray Tomblin Incumbent 50.4% 284,758
     Republican Bill Maloney 45.7% 258,376
     Mountain Jesse Johnson 2.6% 14,614
     Libertarian David Moran 1.4% 7,653
Total Votes 565,401
Election Results via West Virginia Secretary of State Election Results Center.


2012 Endorsements

Heading into the primary election, Tomblin was endorsed by the West Virginia AFL-CIO's Committee on Political Education.[9]

2011

See also: West Virginia special gubernatorial election, 2011 and West Virginia state executive official elections, 2011

West Virginia was not scheduled to hold a gubernatorial election until 2012. However, elected Democrat Joe Manchin gave up the seat to join the U.S. Senate in the 2010 midterms. Tomblin took over the office as West Virginia does not have a lieutenant governor, and won the primary election held May 17th.

Links to gambling

During the 2011 gubernatorial election, Tomblin came under fire for his reported connections to gambling interests in West Virginia.

  • Tomblin's mother, Freda, is the owner of Tomblin Kennels, which breeds greyhounds for West Virginia's two dog racing tracks, Tri-State Racetrack and Gaming Center and Wheeling Island Racetrack and Gaming Center. Tomblin Kennels received $263,604 in 2007 from the West Virginia Greyhound Breeder Development Fund, a state agency.[10]
  • Tomblin owned Southern Amusement, a company that owned 640 video lottery terminals at 128 locations in the state until 1995. At the time it was against the law for video lottery machines, known as gray machines, to be able to pay out. Under pressure to end his association with this company, Tomblin sold it to former state delegate Joe Ferrell, a family friend. Ferrell was indicted June 8, 2009, on 48 counts, including racketeering, mail fraud, and obstruction, by United States Attorney Charles T. Miller.[11][12]
  • Executives associated with the Mountaineer RaceTrack and Gaming Resort gave $2,000 to Tomblin's 2008 senate campaign.[11]
  • Tomblin's 2008 campaign was given $1,000 by the Friends of the Track Political Action Committee (PAC), Charlestown Racing, $1,000 from Penn National Gaming PAC; $1,000 from Phil Reale, attorney for the West Virginia Limited Video Lottery Retailers Association; and $850 from Linda Knowles, owner of K & K Music, a video lottery business.
  • Executives associated with Wheeling Island Racetrack and Gaming Center gave a total of $4,000 to the 2008 campaign. Wheeling Island Racetrack was owned by Delaware North, whose chair and CEO at the time was Jeremy M. Jacobs; Jacobs and his two sons gave a cumulative total of $4,000 in 2008 to the Tomblin campaign.[11]
  • General election

The West Virginia special gubernatorial election was held on October 4, 2011.[13]

Governor of West Virginia, 2011
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark.jpgEarl Ray Tomblin 49.1% 102,234
     Republican Bill Maloney 47.5% 99,013
     Mountain Party Bob Henry Baber 2% 4,193
     Independent Marla Ingels 0.9% 1,967
     American Third Position Harry Bertram 0.4% 795
Total Votes 208,324
  • Primary election

Acting Governor of West Virginia Tomblin won the Democratic seat for the November 2011 special election following a 40.37% win in the May 17 primary. Tomblin faced five Democrats in the primary.

Governor of West Virginia Democratic Primary, 2011
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark.jpgEarl Ray Tomblin Incumbent 40.4% 51,348
Rick Thompson 24.1% 30,631
Natalie Tennant 17.4% 22,106
John Perdue 12.6% 15,995
Jeffrey Kessler 5.2% 6,550
Arnie Moltis 0.4% 481
Total Votes 127,111

2010

Tomblin's senate seat was not up for election in 2010, yet Tomblin made plans to turn over his position as president of the senate to Joe Minard as Tomblin steps in as Governor of West Virginia.[14]

2008

On November 4, 2008, Earl Ray Tomblin won re-election to the West Virginia State Senate, District 7. [15]

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Tomblin is available dating back to 2000. Based on available campaign finance records, Tomblin raised a total of $8,670,849 during that time period. This information was last updated on May 7, 2013.[16]

Earl Ray Tomblin's Campaign Contribution History
Year Office Result Contributions
2012 Governor of West Virginia Won $3,454,252
2011 Governor of West Virginia Won $4,210,524
2010 West Virginia State Senate Not up for election $0
2008 West Virginia State Senate Won $418,179
2006 West Virginia State Senate Not up for election $23,819
2004 West Virginia State Senate Won $355,332
2000 West Virginia State Senate Won $208,743
Grand Total Raised $8,670,849

2012

Tomblin won re-election to the position of Governor of West Virginia in 2012. During that election cycle, Tomblin raised a total of $3,454,252.

2000-2011

Ballotpedia collects information on campaign donors for each year in which a candidate or incumbent is running for election. The following table offers a breakdown of Earl Ray Tomblin's donors each year.[17] Click [show] for more information.


Polls

2012

Tomblin v. Maloney for Governor
Response Charleston Daily Mail by R.L. Repass & Partners
(August 22-25, 2012)		Average
Earl Ray Tomblin 56% 56%
Bill Maloney 35% 35%
Undecided 9% 9%
Number polled 401 401
Margin of error +/-4.9 4.9%
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

Personal

Tomblin and his wife, Joanne, have one son together. Joanne is the president of Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College.[11]

In July 2009, the National Conference of State Legislatures awarded Tomblin its 2009 Excellence in State Legislative Leadership Award.[18]

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term "Earl + Ray + Tomblin + West + Virginia + Governor"

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

Earl Ray Tomblin News Feed


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See also

External links

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References

  1. ↑ Huffington Post.com, "West Virginia election results," October 4, 2011
  2. ↑ Earl Ray Tomblin, "Earl Ray," accessed April 29, 2013
  3. ↑ West Virginia Watchdog "VIDEO: Acting Gov. Tomblin Takes Oath of Office", November 16, 2010
  4. ↑ "VIDEO: Tomblin Announces Plans as Acting Governor of West Virginia," West Virginia Watchdog, November 8, 2010
  5. ↑ Huffington Post, "West Virginia Medicaid Expansion: Earl Ray Tomblin Agrees To Expand Program," May 2, 2013
  6. ↑ Public News Service, "Tomblin Says Medicaid Expansion Healthy for WV," May 3, 2013
  7. ↑ WDTV.com, "Tomblin, Maloney to face off again in November," May 8, 2012
  8. ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State "Election Results" Accessed November 6, 2012
  9. ↑ Herald-Dispatch "W.Va. candidates receive endorsements," March 8, 2012
  10. ↑ Wheeling News Register, "Breeders Cash In", August 10, 2008
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 West Virginia Examiner, "More Tomblin Connections", July 29, 2009
  12. ↑ West Virginia Examiner, "Missed Connections in Ferrell Case"
  13. ↑ Official results; West Virginia Secretary of State
  14. ↑ West Virginia official list of 2010 candidates
  15. ↑ West Virginia Election Results
  16. ↑ Follow the Money, " Career fundraising for Earl Ray Tomblin," accessed May 7, 2013
  17. ↑ Follow the Money.org
  18. ↑ NCSL, "Mountain State Lawmaker Reaches Summit", July 21, 2009
Political offices
Preceded by
' 		West Virginia House of Delegates
1974-1980 		Succeeded by
'
Preceded by
' 		West Virginia State Senate
1980-2010 		Succeeded by
'
Preceded by
Joe Manchin (D) 		Governor of West Virginia
2010-present 		Succeeded by
NA
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