Republicans have tightened their hold on the West Virginia Legislature, notching election wins that will relegate Democrats to an even smaller fraction of the chamber’s 134 seats and giving themselves one of the country’s largest legislative supermajorities.

West Virginia is among the 25 states that do not allow citizen initiatives or constitutional amendments on a statewide ballot, an avenue of direct democracy that has allowed voters to circumvent their legislatures and preserve abortion and other reproductive rights in several states over the past two years.

Former President Donald Trump won West Virginia for the third straight presidential election cycle on Tuesday. The victory adds four electoral votes to the former president's count. West Virginia has one fewer electoral vote this cycle after losing a congressional seat following the 2020 census.

Jim Justice (R) rolled to an easy victory to pick up retiring Sen. Joe Manchin’s (I) seat in West Virginia, marking the first time Republicans have won the seat since the 1950s. He defeated little-known Democratic challenger Glenn Elliott,

West Virginia governor-elect Republican Patrick Morrisey will be sworn in Jan. 13. Morrisey, who has served as West Virginia’s attorney general since 2013, addressed the media on Tuesday for the