Mark Sorsaia
| 2011 State Executive elections |
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Mark Sorsaia was a Republican candidate for Governor of West Virginia in the 2011 elections. He won 4.84 percent, coming in fourth of eight candidates. Bill Maloney won the nomination.
Biography
Sorsaia is an attorney who has practiced in West Virginia since 1984 and is the prosecuting attorney of Putnam County. Before that, he worked as a city attorney and an assistant prosecutor. In private practice, he represented coal, banking, and construction clients.
He has been a guest lecturer at West Virginia State College and for the FBI, and is the faculty of South Carolina's National College of District Attorneys Training Programs held at the United States Justice Departments National Advocacy Center.
Additionally, Mark Sorsaia has been:
- past Vice President of the West Virginia Association of Counties
- member of the Board of Directors of the West Virginia Prosecuting Attorneys Association
- Past Chairman of the Executive Committee of the West Virginia Prosecuting Attorneys Institute
- West Virginia’s representative on the Board of Directors of the National District Attorneys Association
- member of the Board of Regents of the National College of District Attorneys
- Vice President of the National District Attorneys Association
- recipient of the 2009 President's Award from the West Virginia Prosecuting Attorneys Association, regarding outstanding achievement as a Prosecuting Attorney
- recipient of the National District Attorneys Association’s 2007 Presidential Award
- recipient of the 2008 National College of District Attorneys Dean’s award
He and his wife, Cynthia, and their two children live in Hurricane, West Virginia.
Issues
Education
Sorsaia's campaign advocated auditing the state's Education Department, increasing discipline in the classroom, and giving administrators more flexibility to discipline and file underperforming teachers.
He also proposed developing technical and trade programs rather than pushing all children to go directly to college.
Energy
As governor, Sorsaia would have pushed for development of the natural gas resources in the Marcellus Shale, both for tax the revenue and for the employment opportunities.[1]
Tax reform
The Sorsaia campaign's tax plan included reducing business taxation, zeroing out the business franchise tax, and cutting government regulation and reporting requirements. He also backed Right to Work legislation.
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. Senate President Earl Ray Tomblin, also a Democrat, took over the office as the Lieutenant Governor of West Virginia is a title accorded to the legislator elected as Senate President, and is next in succession to the office of governor.
Sorsaia lost the primary. Republican Candidate Bill Maloney won the Republican seat.
| 2011 Race for Governor - Republican Primary | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Percentage | |||
| Clark S. Barnes | 9.58% | |||
| Mitch Carmichael | 3.35% | |||
| Ralph William Clark | 1.88% | |||
| Cliff Ellis | 0.45% | |||
| Larry V. Faircloth | 3.89% | |||
| Betty Ireland | 30.91% | |||
 Bill Maloney
|
45.11% | |||
| Mark Sorsaia | 4.84% | |||
| Total votes | 61,134
134 | |||
Recent news
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See also
- State executive official elections, 2011
- West Virginia state executive official elections, 2011
- West Virginia special gubernatorial election, 2011
- Gubernatorial elections, 2011
- Governor of West Virginia
External links
Footnotes
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