A recently released MetroNews West Virginia poll shows that Jim Justice is a prohibitive favorite to win the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Joe Manchin. The poll shows the Republican Governor leads Democrat Glenn Elliott 62 percent to 28 percent.  Only ten percent either favor another candidate or are not sure.

The support for Justice is broad. He has a significant advantage over Elliott in all the major demographic categories—gender, income level, age, region of the state and level of education. The only potential weak spot is among voters with bachelor’s degrees, where Justice is favored by 49 percent to 36 percent for Elliott.

Justice’s favorables among West Virginia voters are almost as strong as Donald Trump’s—60 percent for Trump and 57 percent for Justice. Just 32 percent of voters view Justice unfavorably, compared with 37 percent for Trump and 33 percent for Senator Shelley Moore Capito.

Two-thirds of the state’s voters approve of the job Justice is doing as Governor, while only 27 percent disapprove. Notably, Justice maintains that high job approval rating even though a majority of voters have a negative view of the state. Fifty-six percent believe West Virginia is on the wrong track and 75 percent think the state’s economy is likely to get worse or just stay the same.

The numbers for Justice are remarkable given that in the latter part of his first term he was underwater. The MetroNews West Virginia Poll in 2019 had Justice’s job approval rating at just 42 percent, while 40 percent disapproved. However, since then Justice’s numbers have been steadily rising.

That increase can be attributed to several factors. He handled the pandemic with science-based decisions and great empathy for the victims. His daily briefings were informative and comforting. In addition, the state has experienced more economic development announcements in the last few years than any time in recent memory.

Meanwhile, Democratic challenger Glenn Elliott has spent the summer traveling the state, going door to door, and trying to build a grassroots base for his campaign. It is a solid strategy for a candidate with limited resources, but it is also a tough row to hoe.

Elliott’s biggest challenge is that most voters simply do not know him. Our poll found that 27 percent have a favorable opinion of him, only 17 percent view him unfavorably, but 57 percent just are not sure. A potential upside is that Elliott is a blank slate to many, so he has a chance to create a favorable impression, but that takes time and money, and the election is just a little over two months away.

There has been a lot of news lately about the Justice family businesses’ non-payment or slow payment of bills, taxes and even health insurance premiums for Greenbrier employees. However, neither that nor perceptions about the state’s economy are having much of an impact.

It is clear that a majority of voters like Jim Justice and think he is doing a good job.