Joe Canestraro
Joe Canestraro (Democratic Party) was a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing District 4. He assumed office in 2016. He left office on December 1, 2020.
Canestraro (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the West Virginia House of Delegates to represent District 4. He did not appear on the ballot for the Democratic primary on June 9, 2020.
Canestraro did not file to run for re-election in 2020. He instead filed to run for Prosecutor of Marshall County.[1]
Committee assignments
2019-2020
Canestraro was assigned to the following committees:
- House Judiciary Committee
- Political Subdivisions Committee
- Senior Citizen Issues Committee
- Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security Committee, Minority Chair Homeland Security
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| West Virginia committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Judiciary |
| • Political Subdivisions |
| • Roads and Transportation |
| • Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2020
Joe Canestraro did not file to run for re-election.
2018
General election
General election for West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 (2 seats)
Lisa Zukoff and incumbent Joe Canestraro defeated Charlie Reynolds in the general election for West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Lisa Zukoff (D) | 36.3 | 6,782 | |
| ✔ |  | Joe Canestraro (D) | 33.7 | 6,295 |
 | Charlie Reynolds (R) | 30.0 | 5,608 | |
| Total votes: 18,685 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 (2 seats)
Lisa Zukoff and incumbent Joe Canestraro advanced from the Democratic primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 on May 8, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Lisa Zukoff | 52.5 | 2,645 | |
| ✔ | | Joe Canestraro | 47.5 | 2,394 |
| Total votes: 5,039 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 (2 seats)
Charlie Reynolds advanced from the Republican primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 on May 8, 2018.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | Charlie Reynolds |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Elections for the West Virginia House of Delegates took place in 2016. The primary election took place on May 10, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was January 30, 2016.
Joe Canestraro and incumbent Michael Ferro defeated incumbent David Evans and Del Kelley in the West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 general election.[2][3]
| West Virginia House of Delegates District 4, General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Joe Canestraro |
25.78% | 6,188 | |
| Democratic | Michael Ferro Incumbent |
34.48% | 8,276 | |
| Republican | David Evans Incumbent | 20.95% | 5,027 | |
| Republican | Del Kelley | 18.79% | 4,509 | |
| Total Votes | 24,000 | |||
| Source: West Virginia Secretary of State | ||||
Joe Canestraro and incumbent Michael Ferro were unopposed in the West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 Democratic primary.[4][5]
| West Virginia House of Delegates District 4, Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Joe Canestraro | |
| Democratic | Michael Ferro Incumbent | |
Incumbent David Evans and Del Kelley were unopposed in the West Virginia House of Delegates District 4 Republican primary.[4][5]
| West Virginia House of Delegates District 4, Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | David Evans Incumbent | |
| Republican | Del Kelley | |
Campaign themes
2018
Ballotpedia survey responses
- See also: Ballotpedia's candidate surveys
Joe Canestraro participated in Ballotpedia's candidate survey on April 9, 2018. The survey questions appear in bold, and Joe Canestraro's responses follow below.[6]
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
| “ | 1) Protect working West Virginians wages and benefits 2) Protect taxpayers from Government fraud and waste |
” |
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about? Why?
| “ | Jobs and Education. We need to double down on public education to attract better jobs to the State of West Virginia. We also must look to advance STEM Education to train our workforce for the jobs of the future. My district has the opportunity to attract quality jobs in the energy sector if we have a qualified workforce and infrastructureCite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many[8]
|
” |
Ballotpedia also asked the candidate a series of optional questions. Joe Canestraro answered the following:
Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?
| “ | My father who was a public school teacher in Marshall County for over 30 years. He taught me that hard work will help you overcome disadvantages and to never give up on your dreams. Also, Major Dick Winters of the famed 101st Airborne, 506th Parachute Infantry Division, Easy Company. I've learned from studying Major Winters that leaders lead from the front, and lead not just on the easy missions, but the tough ones too.[8] | ” |
| “ | Book: Four Trials by John Edwards, The Innocent Man by John Grisham Film/TV: The Grapes of Wrath, NYPD Blue, The Wire, The Newsroom[8] | ” |
| “ | Listening to others, to learn what is important for your constituents and to learn about issues/legislation that you may not have the prior knowledge or experience handling.[8] | ” |
| “ | Good Listener, honest, experienced, hard working[8] | ” |
| “ | Representing and doing what's best for your district. Doing what is in the best interests of the State of WV.[8] | ” |
| “ | Hard work, honesty, that I did my best to ensure constituent needs were met and advanced legislation that moved my district and the State forward.[8] | ” |
| “ | Space Shuttle Challenger disaster on Jan. 28, 1986. I was 10 years old and our elementary school was watching on television.[8] | ” |
| “ | Worked for the WV Dept. of Highways as summer help the summer I graduated from high school and then after my freshman, sophomore and junior years. I learned more about those in blue-collar jobs and learned to study hard in school.[8] | ” |
| “ | At the end of the date, I begged the girl to please go out with me again and she said No.[8] | ” |
| “ | Christmas, because I love all of the Italian and Czech traditions that have been passed down over the years[8] | ” |
| “ | To Kill a Mockingbird because Atticus Finch showed a father's love to his children and taught them how to treat others.[8] | ” |
| “ | Too many. Will McAvoy, the lead character on HBO's the Newsroom. Dr. Luka Kovac from the NBC show ER due to his overcoming struggles Detective Andy Sipowicz from NYPD Blue, due to overcoming struggles and having a huge heart.[8] | ” |
| “ | My recliner. Comfort in watching sports on television and nice for naps[8] | ” |
| “ | "Traveling Alone" by Jason Isbell[8] | ” |
| “ | Loneliness. Being single and not having intimacy of another person.[8] | ” |
| “ | the numbers. There are 100 delegates in the House, which makes it more difficult to reach a consensus, plus the Senate being the upper chamber at times treats the House like we should bow down to what they want at all times.[8] | ” |
| “ | No. It helps but it's not something that is needed.[8] | ” |
| “ | Education Jobs Drug addiction[8] | ” |
| “ | Separation of Powers should make the relationship be almost equal. The Governor should be able to pitch his ideas and agenda, but that does not mean the legislature will agree.[8] | ” |
| “ | Absolutely. Not only with members of your own party but with those across the aisle as well. It's the only way that the heavy lifting can get done.[8] | ” |
| “ | an independent commission to redraw the districts.[8] | ” |
| “ | Judiciary due to the fact that almost all bills to be voted on come through the committee which gives me an advantage of knowing them well. Political Subdivisions due to working at the county level in government, and being close to my county officials. Veterans Affairs in helping those who sacrificed to serve our country.[8] | ” |
| “ | Yes. I think I would do well as the chair of a major committee and be able to control and agenda. I also would do well as a whip, to whip the vote.[8] | ” |
| “ | Yes. On the county level, I would like to one day be the County Prosecuting Attorney or a Circuit Court Judge.[8] | ” |
| “ | The most impactful I've had happened during the 2018 legislative session with the WV Teacher's strike. Having talked with teachers from the county who were at the Capitol, I learned just how there are new teachers who struggle financially.[8] | ” |
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of West Virginia scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2020
In 2020, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 8 to March 7.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on civil liberties issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on firearms issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 9 through March 9.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 10 through March 10.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from February 8 through April 9. The legislature held a special session from May 4 to June 26. The legislature held its second special session from August 1 to September 15.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 13 through March 12.
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See also
- West Virginia House of Delegates
- West Virginia House of Delegates District 4
- West Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2016
- West Virginia State Legislature
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Facebook, "Joe Canestraro for West Virginia on January 13, 2020," accessed February 14, 2020
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "Candidate search," accessed November 4, 2016
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "2016 official general election results," accessed May 3, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 West Virginia Secretary of State, "Candidate Listing by Office," accessed January 30, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 West Virginia Secretary of State, "Statewide Results - Primary Election - May 10, 2016," accessed August 2, 2016
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia's candidate survey, "Joe Canestraro's responses," April 9, 2018
- ↑ 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 8.13 8.14 8.15 8.16 8.17 8.18 8.19 8.20 8.21 8.22 8.23 8.24 8.25 8.26 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
