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William Ridenour
2022 - Present
2026
2
William Ridenour (Republican Party) (also known as Bill) is a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing District 100. He assumed office on December 1, 2022. His current term ends on December 1, 2026.
Ridenour (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the West Virginia House of Delegates to represent District 100. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Ridenour completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
William Ridenour was born in Springfield, Ohio. Ridenour's professional experience includes working as a defense intelligence officer in the Defense Intelligence Agency and chief of strategic policy with the Pentagon. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1980 to 2000. Ridenour earned a bachelor's degree from Purdue University in 1980, a graduate degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2000, and a graduate degree from the Marine Corps War College in 2017.[1]
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.
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Ridenour was assigned to the following committees:
- House Education Committee
- House Judiciary Committee
- Technology & Infrastructure Committee
- Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security Committee
Elections
2024
See also: West Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2024
General election
General election for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100
Incumbent William Ridenour defeated Maria Russo in the general election for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | William Ridenour (R) ![]() | 53.4 | 4,610 |
![]() | Maria Russo (D) ![]() | 46.6 | 4,027 |
Total votes: 8,637 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100
Maria Russo advanced from the Democratic primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 on May 14, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Maria Russo ![]() | 100.0 | 1,010 |
Total votes: 1,010 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100
Incumbent William Ridenour advanced from the Republican primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 on May 14, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | William Ridenour ![]() | 100.0 | 1,548 |
Total votes: 1,548 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Ridenour in this election.
Pledges
Ridenour signed the following pledges.
2022
See also: West Virginia House of Delegates elections, 2022
General election
General election for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100
William Ridenour defeated Susan Benzinger in the general election for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | William Ridenour (R) ![]() | 54.8 | 3,390 |
Susan Benzinger (D) | 45.2 | 2,801 |
Total votes: 6,191 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100
Susan Benzinger advanced from the Democratic primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 on May 10, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | Susan Benzinger | 100.0 | 802 |
Total votes: 802 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100
William Ridenour defeated Pasha Majdi and Steve Harris in the Republican primary for West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 on May 10, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | William Ridenour ![]() | 36.2 | 606 |
Pasha Majdi | 32.2 | 539 | ||
Steve Harris | 31.5 | 527 |
Total votes: 1,672 | ||||
![]() | ||||
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. | ||||
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Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
William Ridenour completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ridenour's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
Collapse all
|As a Marine officer, I principally served in combat units. I survived the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon and other terrorist attacks. As a defense intelligence officer, I conducted strategic counterterrorism/counterintelligence missions against our most dangerous enemies, including deploying to Iraq. I’m a Marine Corps War College Distinguished Graduate, and retired in 2021 as the Joint Staff J2 Chief of Strategic Policy, as I saw the utter futility of advising the feckless Biden regime. I am focused on protecting and securing our freedoms and rights under the Constitution. I believe families are the cornerstone of a free society. I’m Pro-Life, and a strong advocate for protecting our Constitutional rights. I believe religious freedom is critical for a free society. I’m for LEGAL immigration and countering crime. I’m for reducing both our federal and state government sizes, lowering taxes, and against government restrictions and mandates. I believe we need to improve our free market economy, infrastructure, and our failing educational system. I believe we must Keep West Virginia Free and Open! As Delegate and a retired Marine, I’ll fight for our American Freedoms, and to preserve West Virginia as an Oasis of Liberty.
See my positions and proposals at https://billridenour.com/.- American Liberty is enduring its most dangerous period in our history; we are at a crossroads – we either regain our Freedoms or descend into tyranny. The People must secure their Liberty – government is not Freedom’s guarantor. Government must be restricted as much as possible to ensure Liberty, while avoiding anarchy. Our Rights are God-given and not derived from any government. State legislatures must resume their role as the principal bulwark against the federal government, and must zealously guard against overreach by the federal government and bureaucracy. To resolve excesses by the federal government and threats to Liberty, a Convention of States to amend the Constitution to strengthen Liberty and restrict government is critical.
- West Virginia is an Oasis of Liberty – we can’t sit by as proponents of tyranny attack our Freedoms. Our society & economy must be open – individual responsibility should be our standard; oppressive mandates should not be imposed on a free society. I am proudly pro-Life & pro-Family. The 1st & 2nd Amendments are critical to a functioning Republic and must be defended by every means – the People must oppose corporations & groups that seek to undermine the Constitution and our Liberty. Free Enterprise, particularly small business, is the best economic system for a free society – government must avoid interfering with Free Enterprise. Racism, of any stripe, is an attack on Liberty that should never be encouraged or tolerated.
- A society founded on law and order is critical for a functional government – equal justice and effective law enforcement are pillars of an effective society. Security of the People is government’s critical function – our police must be supported. Illegal immigration is a threat to our Liberty–state governments must do more to counter this threat. Corruption in government is a betrayal of Liberty, and should be eradicated. Professional politicians must be regularly turned out to ensure the People are their own representatives. As the Constitution stipulates, state legislatures have authority over elections – the states must re-assert their primacy over elections to ensure they are free, fair and isolated from political partisan manipulation.
I also believe that the focus on accomplishing the mission that both my parents and the Marine Corps instilled in me makes me a better person and elected representative, as I am determined to do the best for the people who elect me.
West Virginia State Senator Patricia Rucker
West Virginia Republican Assembly
West Virginia Freedom Caucus
West Virginia Farm Bureau
West Virginia Citizens Defense League
National Rifle Association A rating
West Virginia Nurses PAC
West Virginia Health Freedom PAC
Eastern Panhandle Business Association
West Virginia State Senator Mike Stuart
Jefferson County Sheriff Tom Hansen
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.
2022
William Ridenour completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ridenour's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
Collapse all
|My campaign focuses on protecting and securing our freedoms and rights under the Constitution. I believe families are the corner stone of a free society. I’m Pro-Life, and First and Second Amendments. I believe religious freedom is critical for a free society. I’m for LEGAL immigration. I’m for reducing both our federal and state government sizes, lowering taxes, and against government restrictions and mandates. I believe we must Keep West Virginia Free and Open! As a retired Marine officer, I operated mainly in combat units. I survived the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon. As a recently retired DoD intelligence officer I conducted strategic counterterrorism/counterintelligence missions against our most dangerous enemies, including deploying to Iraq. I’m a Marine Corps War College Distinguished Graduate, and retired in 2021 as the Joint Staff J2 Chief of Strategic Policy, as I saw the utter futility of advising the feckless Biden regime.
As Delegate and a retired Marine, I’ll fight for American Liberty, and to preserve West Virginia as an Oasis of Liberty.- American Liberty is enduring its most dangerous period in our history; we are at a crossroads – either regain our Freedoms or descend into tyranny. The People must secure their Liberty – government is not our guarantor. Government must be as restricted as possible to ensure Liberty, while avoiding anarchy. Our Rights are God given and not derived from any government. State legislatures must resume their role as the principal bulwark against the federal government, and must zealously guard against overreach by the federal government and bureaucracy. To resolve excesses by the federal government and threats to Liberty, a Convention of States to amend the Constitution to strengthen Liberty and restrict government is critical.
- West Virginia is an Oasis of Liberty – we can’t sit by as proponents of tyranny attack our Freedoms. Our society & economy should be open – individual responsibility should be the standard for all; oppressive mandates should not be imposed on a free society. I am proudly pro-Life & pro-Family. The 1st & 2nd Amendments are critical to a functioning Republic and must be defended by every means – the People must punish corporations & groups that seek to undermine the Constitution and our Liberty. Free Enterprise, particularly small business, is the best economic system for a free society – government must avoid interfering with Free Enterprise. Racism, of any stripe, is an attack on Liberty that should never be encouraged or tolerated.
- An ordered society is critical to a functional government – equal justice and effective law enforcement are pillars of an ordered society. Security of the People is government’s most critical function – our police must be supported. Illegal immigration is a threat to our Liberty–state governments must do more to counter this threat. Corruption in government is a betrayal of Liberty, and should be eradicated. Professional politicians must be regularly turned out to ensure the People are their own representatives. As the Constitution stipulates, state legislatures have authority over elections – the states must re-assert their primacy over elections to ensure they are free, fair and isolated from political partisan manipulation.
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 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.
2024
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 10 to March 9. A special session began on September 30 and adjourned on October 8.
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2023
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 11 to March 11.
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2022
To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the West Virginia State Legislature was in session from January 12 to March 12.
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See also
2024 Elections
External links
Candidate West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 |
Officeholder West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on April 10, 2022
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by - |
West Virginia House of Delegates District 100 2022-Present |
Succeeded by - |