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Joe Manchin III

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Joe Manchin III
Joe Manchin.jpg
U.S. Senate, West Virginia
Incumbent
In office
November 15, 2010-Present
Term ends
January 3, 2019
Years in position 3
PartyDemocratic
PredecessorCarte Goodwin (D)
Compensation
Base salary$174,000/year
Elections and appointments
Last electionNovember 6, 2012
First electedNovember 2, 2010
Next electionNovember 2018
Term limitsN/A
Prior offices
Governor of West Virginia
2004-2010
West Virginia Secretary of State
2000-2004
West Virginia State Senate
1986-1996
Education
High schoolFarmington High School
Bachelor'sWest Virginia University
Personal
BirthdayAugust 24, 1947
Place of birthFarmington, WV
Net worth$7,650,050
Websites
Office website
Campaign website

Contents

Joseph Anthony (Joe) Manchin III (b. August 24, 1947) is a Democratic member of the U.S. Senate from the state of West Virginia. He succeeded the late Robert Byrd in a special election in 2010.

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Manchin is a "centrist Democratic follower".[1]

Manchin won re-election in 2012.[2] He defeated Sheirl Fletcher in the May 8, 2012 Democratic primary and faced Republican John Raese in the general election.[3]

Biography

Manchin entered West Virginia University on a football scholarship in 1965. He graduated in 1970 with a degree in business administration. He then became involved in several family-owned businesses before launching his political career.[4]

Career

Committee assignments

U.S. Senate

2013-2014

Manchin serves on the following Senate committees[5]:

2011-2012

Manchin was on the following Senate committees[6]:

Issues

Political positions

Gay Marriage

Sen. Joe Manchin is a supporter of the Defense of Marriage Act, and is opposed to gay marriage. He is one of nine Democratic senators to oppose gay marriage. His spokesman, Katie Longo, enunciated his position, saying, "Senator Manchin believes that a marriage is a union between one man and one woman. His beliefs are guided by his faith, and he supports the Defense of Marriage Act."[7]

Manchin is one of only three Democratic Senators who have not voiced support for same-sex marriage, as of April 2013.[8][9]

Controversies

As West Virginia State Senator

Uncle's impeachment trial

As a state senator, Manchin heard the impeachment trial of his uncle, A. James Manchin, then the State Treasurer.

As Governor of West Virginia

Massey Energy

In July 2005, Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship sued then-Governor Manchin alleging that he violated his First Amendment Rights by threatening to retaliate with increased government scrutiny of his coal operations.

Sago Mine disaster

During the 2006 Sago Mine disaster of early January 2006, Manchin initially appeared to confirm reports that 12 miners had survived. These reports proved to be incorrect three hours later, when it was confirmed that only one miner survived the accident. In an early-morning press conference on January 4, Manchin acknowledged that an unintentional miscommunication had occurred with rescue teams within the mine, and stated that the incorrect information he received regarding the status of the miners was not received through official channels. Although he did not confirm the story, the press assumed he did, and no one is currently aware how the story was confirmed.

His handling of the Sago mine incident may have enhanced his popularity. In November 2006, SurveyUSA ranked him as one of the most popular governors in the country with a 74% approval rating. [10]

On February 1, 2006, Manchin ordered a stop to all coal production in the state of West Virginia pending safety checks after two more miners were killed that day in separate accidents.[11] A total of 16 West Virginia coal miners died from mining accidents in early 2006.

Iraq visit

On April 15, 2006, during an Easter visit to U.S. soldiers stationed in Iraq, the governor caused a controversy by posing for photographers while signing two missiles at Balad Air Force Base. One of the messages read, "Sending you to hell, from Almost Heaven, West Virginia." He explained his intentions to the media, stating, "I just thought, 'Hey, these are people doing tremendous harm to our people.' I wanted to send them a little message."[12] After receiving several complaints, Manchin issued an apology.

Fiscal Cliff

Voted "Yes" Manchin voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.[13]

Endorsements

2012

Heading into the primary, Manchin was endorsed by the West Virginia AFL-CIO's Committee on Political Education.[14]

Elections

2012

See also: United States Senate elections in West Virginia, 2012

Manchin ran for re-election in 2012. He defeated Sheirl Fletcher in the May 8, 2012 Democratic primary and defeated Republican John Raese in the November 6 general election.[2][3][15]

U.S. Senate, West Virginia, General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark.jpgJoe Manchin III Incumbent 60.5% 391,669
     Republican John R. Raese 36.5% 236,620
     Mountain Bob Henry Baber 3% 19,232
Total Votes 647,521
Source: West Virginia Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

Manchin was elected to the senate by a special election on November 2, 2010, to fill the late Robert Byrd's seat.[16] Between Byrd's death in July and the special election, Byrd's seat was temporarily held by his chief counsel, Carte Goodwin.[17] He defeated John R. Raese (R), Jesse Johnson (Mountain Party), and Jeff Becker (Constitution).[18]

U.S. Senate, West Virginia, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark.jpgJoe Manchin III 53.5% 283,358
     Republican John R. Raese 43.4% 230,013
     Mountain Jesse Johnson 1.9% 10,152
     Constitution Jeff Becker 1.2% 6,425
Total Votes 529,948

2004

Manchin announced his intention to challenge incumbent governor Bob Wise in the 2004 Democratic Primary in May 2003; however, Wise decided not to run for re-election after a scandal, becoming the first governor not to do so since running for re-election was permitted in 1972. Manchin won both the primary and general election by large margins, and his election marked the first time that two persons of the same political party have followed one another in the governor's office since 1964.

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Manchin is available dating back to 2010. Based on available campaign finance records, Manchin raised a total of $13,862,110 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 25, 2013.[19]

Joe Manchin III's Campaign Contribution History
Year Office Result Contributions
2010 U.S. Senate (West Virginia) Won $9,467,003
2004 U.S. Senate (West Virginia) Won $4,395,107
Grand Total Raised $13,862,110

2012

Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2012 elections season. Below are Manchin's reports.[20]

Joe Manchin 2012 Campaign Finance Reports
ReportDate FiledBeginning BalanceTotal Contributions
for Reporting Period		ExpendituresCash on Hand
April Quarterly[21]March 31, 2012$2,036,498.19$883,956.17$(190,938.63)$2,729,515.68
July Quarterly[22]June 30, 2012$2,883,105.86$656,663.53$(1,328,115.46)$2,211,653.93
Running totals
$1,540,619.7$(1,519,054.09)

2010

Breakdown of the source of Manchin's campaign funds before the 2010 election.

Manchin won election to the U.S. Senate in 2010. During that election cycle, Manchin's campaign committee raised a total of $4,395,107 and spent $4,017,802.[23]

Analysis

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Manchin missed 9 of 631 roll call votes from November 2010 to April 2013. This amounts to 1.4%, which is better than the median of 1.7% among current senators as of April 2013.[24]

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Manchin paid his congressional staff a total of $1,790,208 in 2011. He ranks 2nd on the list of the lowest paid Democratic Senatorial Staff Salaries and he ranks 11th overall of the lowest paid Senatorial Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, West Virginia ranks 22nd in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[25]

Net worth

See also: Net Worth of United States Senators and Representatives

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Manchin's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $3,614,101 and $11,686,000. That averages to $7,650,050, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senators in 2011 of $20,795,450. His average net worth increased by 6.58% from 2010.[26]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Manchin's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $3,697,087 and $10,658,000. That averages to $7,177,543.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senators in 2010 of $19,383,524.[27]

National Journal vote ratings

2012

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Manchin ranked 53rd in the liberal rankings in 2012.[28]

2011

See also: National Journal vote ratings

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Manchin ranked 53rd in the conservative rankings.[29]

Percentage voting with party

November 2011

The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Manchin voted with the Democratic Party 83.3% of the time, which ranked 50 among the 51 Senate Democratic members in November 2011.[30]

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Joe + Manchin + Senate

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

Joe Manchin News Feed


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Personal

Manchin and his wife, Gayle Conelly Manchin, have three children and seven grandchildren.[31]

External links

Governor

References

  1. ↑ Gov Track "Joe Manchin," Accessed March 3, 2012
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 CNN "West Virginia Senate Race - 2012 Election Center"
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 West Virginia Metro News "2012 Primary Results," May 8, 2012
  4. ↑ Biographical Directory of the United States Congress "Joe Manchin III," Accessed October 14, 2011
  5. ↑ Congressional Quarterly "Senate Committee List" Accessed January 22, 2013
  6. ↑ Official Senate website "Committee and Subcommittee Assignments," Accessed October 14, 2011
  7. ↑ Huffingtonpost.com "Gay Marriage Rights: The 10 Democratic Senators Who Still Say No" March 2013
  8. ↑ Metro Weekly "Bill Nelson becomes 51st senator to support same-sex marriage" Accessed April 5, 2013
  9. ↑ Talking Points Memo "Senator Tim Johnson Endorses Gay Marriage" Accessed April 9, 2013
  10. ↑ APPROVAL RATINGS FOR ALL 50 GOVERNORS AS OF 11/20/06 SurveyUSA, Nov. 20, 2006
  11. ↑ Governor asks coal mines to stop production CNN, Feb. 01, 2006
  12. ↑ Governor Manchin Spends Easter In Iraq by Gabe Gutierrez, WOWK-TV, Apr. 16, 2006
  13. ↑ U.S. Senate "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.
  14. ↑ Herald-Dispatch "W.Va. candidates receive endorsements," March 8, 2012
  15. ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State "2012 Primary Results"
  16. ↑ Official Senate website "Joe Manchin," Accessed October 14, 2011
  17. ↑ The Hill "Byrd's successor to take oath Tuesday," Accessed October 14, 2011
  18. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010"
  19. ↑ Open Secrets "Donor history for Joe Manchin" Accessed April 25, 2013
  20. ↑ Federal Election Commission "Joe Manchin's Summary Report," Accessed October 12, 2012
  21. ↑ Federal Election Commission "April Quarterly" Accessed October 12, 2012
  22. ↑ Federal Election Commission "July Quarterly" Accessed October 12, 2012
  23. ↑ Open Secrets "Joe Manchin 2010 Election Cycle," Accessed November 26, 2011
  24. ↑ GovTrack, "Manchin," Accessed April 11, 2013
  25. ↑ LegiStorm "Joe Manchin"
  26. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Manchin, (D-West Virginia), 2011"
  27. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Manchin, (D-West VA), 2010"
  28. ↑ National Journal, "2012 Congressional Vote Ratings," February 28, 2013
  29. ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: Senate," February 23, 2012
  30. ↑ Open Congress "Voting With Party"
  31. ↑ Official Senate website "Biography," Accessed October 14, 2011
Political offices
Preceded by
Carte Goodwin 		U.S. Senate - West Virginia
2010-Present 		Succeeded by
-
v • d • e
West Virginia's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Jay Rockefeller (D) • Joe Manchin III (D)
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