Thornton Cooper
Thornton Cooper (Democratic Party) ran for election for West Virginia Secretary of State. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Cooper completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Thornton Cooper was born in South Charleston, West Virginia. Cooper's career experience includes working as an attorney. He earned a B.A. in political science from Yale University in 1972 and J.D. from the West Virginia University College of Law in 1978.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: West Virginia Secretary of State election, 2024
General election
General election for West Virginia Secretary of State
Kris Warner defeated Thornton Cooper in the general election for West Virginia Secretary of State on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Kris Warner (R) | 71.1 | 510,992 |
 | Thornton Cooper (D)  | 28.9 | 207,238 | |
| Total votes: 718,230 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for West Virginia Secretary of State
Thornton Cooper advanced from the Democratic primary for West Virginia Secretary of State on May 14, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Thornton Cooper | 100.0 | 82,262 |
| Total votes: 82,262 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for West Virginia Secretary of State
Kris Warner defeated Douglas Skaff, Jr., Ken Reed, and Brian Wood in the Republican primary for West Virginia Secretary of State on May 14, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Kris Warner | 45.9 | 92,911 |
 | Douglas Skaff, Jr. | 21.0 | 42,515 | |
 | Ken Reed | 16.8 | 34,101 | |
 | Brian Wood | 16.3 | 33,083 | |
| Total votes: 202,610 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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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. Incumbent John B. McCuskey (R) and incumbent Chris Stansbury (R) did not seek re-election.
The following candidates ran in the West Virginia House of Delegates District 35 general election.[2][3]
| West Virginia House of Delegates District 35, General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Andrew Byrd Incumbent |
15.23% | 13,546 | |
| Republican | Moore Capito |
16.67% | 14,822 | |
| Republican | Charlotte Lane |
11.81% | 10,505 | |
| Republican | Eric Nelson Incumbent |
13.36% | 11,881 | |
| Democratic | Ben Adams | 11.13% | 9,899 | |
| Democratic | Thornton Cooper | 10.57% | 9,404 | |
| Democratic | Benjamin M. Sheridan | 9.70% | 8,628 | |
| Republican | Keith Pauley | 11.53% | 10,251 | |
| Total Votes | 88,936 | |||
| Source: West Virginia Secretary of State | ||||
The following candidates ran in the West Virginia House of Delegates District 35 Democratic primary.[4][5]
| West Virginia House of Delegates District 35, Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Ben Adams |
13.80% | 3,806 | |
| Democratic | Andrew Byrd Incumbent |
22.87% | 6,308 | |
| Democratic | Thornton Cooper |
12.37% | 3,413 | |
| Democratic | Benjamin M. Sheridan |
10.64% | 2,935 | |
| Democratic | C.B. Britton | 6.37% | 1,757 | |
| Democratic | Devin J. Casey | 6.38% | 1,759 | |
| Democratic | John Knight | 8.27% | 2,281 | |
| Democratic | Shawn Little | 9.11% | 2,513 | |
| Democratic | Jack Rogers | 10.18% | 2,809 | |
| Total Votes | 27,581 | |||
The following candidates ran in the West Virginia House of Delegates District 35 Republican primary.[4][5]
| West Virginia House of Delegates District 35, Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Moore Capito |
23.77% | 4,896 | |
| Republican | Charlotte Lane |
14.43% | 2,973 | |
| Republican | Eric Nelson Incumbent |
21.30% | 4,388 | |
| Republican | Keith Pauley |
14.03% | 2,890 | |
| Republican | Calvin Grimm | 4.20% | 866 | |
| Republican | Bill Johnson | 9.00% | 1,853 | |
| Republican | Matt Kelly | 13.26% | 2,731 | |
| Total Votes | 20,597 | |||
2014
Elections for the West Virginia House of Delegates took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 13, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was January 25, 2014. District 35 is represented by four delegates. Andrew Byrd, Thornton Cooper, Barbara Hatfield and Sherri Wong defeated John Caudill, IV, David Harless, Bret Nida, Joe Wallace and Gary Winter in the Democratic primary. Incumbents J.B. McCuskey, Eric Nelson, and Suzette Raines and Chris Stansbury defeated Richard McGinnis and Marie Sprouse-McDavid in the Republican primary. Byrd, McCuskey, Nelson, and Stansbury defeated Cooper, Hatfield, Wong, and Sprouse-McDavid in the general election. Raines withdrew from the race due to personal reasons and allegations from Democrats.[6] She was replaced by Sprouse-McDavid on the general election ballot.[7][8]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Eric Nelson Incumbent |
15.7% | 11,050 | |
| Republican | J.B. McCuskey Incumbent |
14.3% | 10,013 | |
| Republican | Chris Stansbury |
12.7% | 8,897 | |
| Democratic | Andrew Byrd |
12.6% | 8,852 | |
| Republican | Marie Sprouse-McDavid | 12% | 8,436 | |
| Democratic | Bobbie Hatfield | 12% | 8,401 | |
| Democratic | Sherri Wong | 11.4% | 8,039 | |
| Democratic | Thornton Cooper | 9.3% | 6,548 | |
| Total Votes | 70,236 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Bobbie Hatfield |
21.2% | 3,601 |
| Andrew Byrd |
14.8% | 2,510 |
| Sherri Wong |
14.3% | 2,435 |
| Thornton Cooper |
13.1% | 2,232 |
| John Caudill, IV | 11.6% | 1,976 |
| Bret Nida | 9% | 1,539 |
| Gary Winter | 6.5% | 1,114 |
| David Harless | 5% | 851 |
| Joe Wallace | 4.4% | 753 |
| Total Votes | 17,011 | |
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Eric Nelson Incumbent |
24.9% | 2,952 |
| Suzette Raines Incumbent |
21.6% | 2,563 |
| J.B. McCuskey Incumbent |
20.6% | 2,445 |
| Chris Stansbury |
15.1% | 1,789 |
| Marie Sprouse-McDavid | 10.8% | 1,285 |
| Richard McGinnis | 6.9% | 819 |
| Total Votes | 11,853 | |
2012
Cooper ran in the 2012 election for West Virginia House of Delegates, District 35. Cooper, John Caudill, IV, Lisa Amoroso, Fred Giggenbach, and Gary Eugene Holstein were defeated by Douglas Skaff, Jr., Barbara "Bobbie" Hatfield, Christopher "Chris" Morris, and Bonnie Brown in the May 8 primary election.[9][10]
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Doug Skaff, Jr. Incumbent |
19.9% | 4,246 |
| Bonnie Brown Incumbent |
18.7% | 3,982 |
| Bobbie Hatfield Incumbent |
16.8% | 3,581 |
| Chris Morris |
11.4% | 2,441 |
| Thornton Cooper | 8.5% | 1,822 |
| Fred Giggenbach | 7.6% | 1,625 |
| John D. Caudill, IV | 7.2% | 1,540 |
| Lisa Amoroso | 7.2% | 1,528 |
| Gary Eugene Holstein | 2.7% | 574 |
| Total Votes | 21,339 | |
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Cooper in this election.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Thornton Cooper completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Cooper's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
Of the candidates for Secretary of State, I have the most experience in state government, having served about 29 years before retiring. For most of that time, I was an attorney and administrator for the Public Service Commission of West Virginia (PSCWV). Before that, I worked for the state Department of Highways and the state Human Rights Commission.
A native and resident of South Charleston, West Virginia, I graduated from South Charleston High School, Yale University (B.A., Political Science), and the WVU College of Law (Juris Doctor). I have 2 sons and 4 grandchildren. An environmentalist, I have 24 solar panels on my roof and drive a plug-in hybrid.
An active member of the West Virginia State Bar from 1978 to the present, I have argued cases and/or submitted briefs before the PSCWV, several circuit courts, the state Supreme Court of Appeals, West Virginia's two federal district courts, and one federal appeals court.
A long-time activist, I have been participating in political campaigns (either as a volunteer or as a candidate) since I was a teenager. I have also actively opposed or supported many proposed state constitutional amendments. I have been a party in a number of election-law court cases involving prior Secretaries of State. From 1981 to the present, I have been developing redistricting plans.
Currently, I am the South Charleston's Democratic Party Chairman.- I want to make it easy for West Virginians to vote in either of 3 ways: (1) If a registered voter wants to vote by mail, he or she should be able to do so without having to give a reason for voting by mail. (2) If a registered voter wants to vote early in person at a designated polling place, he or she should have that choice. (3) If a registered voter wants to vote at his or her local precinct on Election Day, he or she should still have that choice.
- We need to protect our election workers from harassment and intimidation.
- The West Virginia Secretary of State, in conjunction with other state officials, should make it easy for someone to form a corporation or limited liability company and to start a business.
The Secretary of State should display integrity, experience, and competence. For example, the Secretary of State should not let his or her party affiliation affect how he or she rules in a controversy between a candidate of one party and a candidate of another party.
Furthermore, the Secretary of State needs to give proper deference to each of West Virginia's 55 County Clerks. In each county, the County Clerk is the county's chief election officer. The Secretary of State should not attempt to micromanage how each County Clerk does his or her job.
(2) The Secretary of State also should work to make it easier for West Virginians and other individuals to form corporations and limited liability companies. Working with other state officials, the Secretary of State should make it easier for individuals to start businesses.
(3) The Secretary of State also has extensive responsibilities relating to the proper filing of rules adopted by the various state agencies. In many cases, the West Virginia Legislature has to approve an agency's rule before it can take effect.
I was just 10 years old.
My parents were Democrats who were strong supporters of JFK. For Election Day, my mother decorated our dining and living rooms with some red, white, and blue symbols, and, as I recall, also a donkey and an elephant. I believe that we might have even owned a "PT 109" tie clip to celebrate Kennedy's heroic naval service during World War II.
John F. Kennedy had a strong connection with West Virginians. Although my parents were Protestants, our family thought that people in our state who opposed Kennedy because he was a Roman Catholic were ignorant. Kennedy's defeat of Hubert Humphrey in the 1960 Democratic primary election was cited by the national media as evidence that a Catholic could defeat a Protestant. (Actually, though, West Virginia Democrats had supported Roman Catholic Al Smith back in the 1928 Democratic primary.)
My parents invited another couple, who attended the same Baptist church in Charleston that we attended, over to our house in South Charleston to watch the election returns on the black and white TV in our living room. On Election Night, I used red and blue colored pencils to draw on a white poster the following characters: Uncle Sam, John F. Kennedy, and a donkey. On that poster, I added the following sentence: "Let Democrats do it for you."
In terms of the popular vote, the race between JFK and Richard Nixon turned out to be very close. The results in the Electoral College were also in doubt. Our neighbors returned home long before the networks finally called the election.
Although he was assassinated in 1963, John F. Kennedy motivated millions of young Americans to go into politics and government.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Cooper’s campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
Recently, THORNTON COOPER, the 2024 Democratic candidate for WEST VIRGINIA SECRETARY OF STATE, was asked by a community organization a number of questions about his decision to run as the Democratic candidate for West Virginia Secretary of State. The following questions and answers are based upon what he told that organization: Thornton Cooper, what public office are you seeking in 2024? West Virginia Secretary of State Mr. Cooper, what will be your number one priority if elected? If the members of the Legislature concur, I would work to make it easier for a registered West Virginia voter to vote in any of three ways: (1) voting early by mail without having to submit an excuse for doing so, (2) voting in person before Election Day at designated locations in the voter's county, (3) voting in person on Election Day at the voter's precinct. We should also make it even easier for West Virginians in uniform who are deployed overseas to vote early. To ensure the integrity of our elections, we need to protect poll workers from intimidation and harassment by political extremists. Mr. Cooper, please tell us about your professional background and how it would help you serve in office. I have extensive experience in the executive branch of state government, having served about 29 years before retiring at the end of 2005. For most of that time, I was an attorney and administrator for the Public Service Commission of West Virginia (PSCWV). Before that, I worked for the West Virginia Department of Highways and the West Virginia Human Rights Commission. I am a native and resident of South Charleston, West Virginia. I graduated from South Charleston High School, Yale University (B.A., Political Science), and the WVU College of Law (Juris Doctor). An active member of the West Virginia State Bar from 1978 to the present, I have argued cases and/or submitted briefs before the PSCWV, several circuit courts, the state Supreme Court of Appeals, West Virginia's two federal district courts, and one federal appeals court. The Secretary of State is the Chief Election Officer of West Virginia. It is important for the individual who serves in that office to understand the election process. I certainly qualify in that regard. A long-time activist, I have been participating in political campaigns (either as a volunteer or as a candidate) since I was a teenager. I have also actively opposed or supported many proposed state constitutional amendments. I have been a party in a number of election-law court cases involving prior Secretaries of State. From 1981 to the present, I have been developing redistricting plans. Mr. Cooper, what is your plan for the position and term you are seeking? First, I shall try to comply with all of the constitutional and statutory requirements imposed upon the Secretary of State. These involve such varied topics as administering the state's extensive election law; registration of corporations and limited liability companies; proper filing of state rules and regulations; and regulation of notaries public. The Secretary of State needs to lead by example. There are many requirements administered by the Secretary of State that are imposed upon members of the public. For example, candidates for public office and managers of corporations and limited liability companies are required by law to file many reports and forms with the Secretary of State. It is important that the Secretary of State himself or herself file all the reports and forms that he or she is required by law to file and to supply all information on those forms that the law requires. I have no desire to run for another office while I am serving as Secretary of State. For the past several decades, previous occupants of the office have been candidates for other offices. I would also like to operate the office in a nonpartisan manner. I think that most employees in the Secretary of State's Office should be under Civil Service. IT IS ORDERED that copies of this RESOLUTION, as adopted, be transmitted and distributed to newspapers and other media throughout the state of West Virginia. Why did you choose to run for public office? (1) If the voters of West Virginia honor me by electing me as West Virginia Secretary or State in 2024, I believe that I would be the most qualified individual in West Virginia to serve in that office (except for a few individuals, such as, Joe Manchin and Natalie Tennant, who have already served in that position). (2) The reason that West Virginians still have the opportunity to elect a Secretary of State is that I, among with many others, helped defeat a proposed state constitutional amendment in an election held on September 9, 1989, that would have denied West Virginia voters the right to vote for Secretary of State, state Treasurer, and Commissioner of Agriculture. I spent many hours working to defeat that proposed amendment. (3) At the beginning of the 2024 filing period, it was widely believed that no Democrat would file for the office. After working so hard 35 years ago, back in 1989, to preserve the right of West Virginians to elect their Secretary of State, I decided that I could not allow this important office to go to a Republican by default. Mr. Cooper, how can you be a unifier? I have no desire to use the Secretary of State's Office as a stepping stone to run for another office. If elected, I would operate the office in a professional, nonpartisan manner. Thornton Cooper, what plans do you have to enhance the business community? As someone who has incorporated both a for-profit corporation and a nonprofit corporation, I am aware of the importance of the Secretary of State's Office to someone who wants to establish a small business. Under existing West Virginia law, the Secretary of State already works in concert with other state officials to make it easy for West Virginians to start their own small businesses. Please go to business4.wv.gov to access the WV One Stop Business Portal. I shall encourage comments from the public on making that portal work even better.[11] |
” |
| —Thornton Cooper’s campaign website (2024)[12] | ||
2016
Cooper's campaign website highlighted the following issues:
| “ |
|
” |
| —Thornton Cooper[13] | ||
2014
Cooper's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[14]
- Raising the minimum wage
- Protecting the safety of the state's drinking water
- Preserving state laws relating to the disposal of solid waste
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.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Thornton + Cooper + West + Virginia + House"
- All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate West Virginia Secretary of State |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on April 15, 2024
- ↑ 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
- ↑ Charleston Daily Mail, "Officials rule GOP can't replace Raines on ballot," August 13, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "Candidate search," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "Statewide Results," accessed June 18, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "Statewide Results - General Election - November 6, 2012," accessed February 12, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "Statewide Results - Primary Election - May 8, 2012," accessed February 12, 2014
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Thornton Cooper’s campaign website, “Issues,” accessed September 26, 2024
- ↑ Thornton Cooper, "Issues," accessed September 20, 2016
- ↑ Cooper for the House in 2014, "Home pages," accessed April 24, 2014
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