{"id":2236097,"date":"2024-05-02T23:30:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-03T03:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mooney-gets-boost-from-ted-cruz-and-plots-upset-in-west-virginia-senate-race-people-are-in-denial\/"},"modified":"2024-05-02T23:31:38","modified_gmt":"2024-05-03T03:31:38","slug":"mooney-gets-boost-from-ted-cruz-and-plots-upset-in-west-virginia-senate-race-people-are-in-denial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mooney-gets-boost-from-ted-cruz-and-plots-upset-in-west-virginia-senate-race-people-are-in-denial\/","title":{"rendered":"Mooney fueled by Ted Cruz support, aims for upset in West Virginia Senate race despite skepticism"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmooney-gets-boost-from-ted-cruz-and-plots-upset-in-west-virginia-senate-race-people-are-in-denial%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2236097&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Rep. Alex Mooney \u200d(R-WV) faces a challenging\u2063 Senate primary against Gov. \u200dJim Justice (R-WV) in West Virginia. Despite trailing in polls, Mooney downplays the \u200bgap, emphasizing the\u200b race&#8217;s\u200c true conservative values. With <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-endorses-mike-pences-brother-without-mentioning-ex-vp\/\" title=\"Trump Endorses Mike Pence\u2019s Brother Without Mentioning Ex-VP\">high-profile endorsements<\/a> \u2063and shifting dynamics \u200cfollowing Manchin&#8217;s withdrawal, the battle\u2063 underscores the NRSC&#8217;s primary strategy. The\u200c conservative Club for \u2063Growth supports Mooney, backed\u200c by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), in a pivotal contest that signals a potential shift\u2064 in West Virginia&#8217;s \u2063Senate representation towards\u2063 the Republican party.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><strong>KEARNEYSVILLE, West Virginia \u2014<\/strong> With less than two weeks until the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/west-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"West Virginia\">West Virginia<\/a> Senate primary, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mooneyforwv.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV)\">Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV)<\/a> is downplaying recent polling showing his opponent, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jim-justice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Gov. Jim Justice\">Gov. Jim Justice<\/a> (R-WV), leads consistently by double digits, saying they don\u2019t reflect the reality in the state.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA lot of people are in denial here. A lot of people just think the establishment is going to win, but this primary is actually about who is a true conservative,\u201d Mooney said in an interview with the <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>ahead of a campaign stop on Thursday. <\/p>\n<p>The five-term congressman is facing an uphill battle against the state\u2019s popular two-term governor, who was recruited and endorsed by the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Former President Donald Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2573438\/trump-endorses-manchin-foe-jim-justice-in-vital-senate-race\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>endorsed <\/a>Justice in the Senate race to replace outgoing Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV). <\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) spoke to the Washington Examiner about endorsing Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) for Senate at a campaign event in West Virginia on Wednesday, May 2, 2024. (Amy DeLaura \/ Washington Examiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The race will ultimately be a test of the NRSC\u2019s new strategy of picking sides in primaries. The conservative <a href=\"https:\/\/www.clubforgrowth.org\/candidates\/alex-mooney\/\">Club for Growth<\/a> is going head to head with the Senate Republicans\u2019 campaign arm, taking on candidates it believes are not conservative enough on fiscal issues and backing Mooney in the race.<\/p>\n<figure><\/figure>\n<p>Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who endorsed Mooney\u2019s bid about a year ago, was a featured speaker at the rally. He said the outlook of the race has now changed significantly after Manchin <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2455649\/manchin-wont-seek-senate-reelection-as-he-promises-to-fight-to-unite-the-middle\/\">announced<\/a> he would not be running for reelection last November.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA year ago when everyone thought Joe Manchin was going to run, the main argument that was used within the Senate was we need a candidate that can beat Manchin,\u201d Cruz said in response to a question from the <em>Washington Examiner. <\/em>\u201cIt\u2019s a very different race now. At this point, it is almost indisputable that the next senator from West Virginia is going to be a Republican.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA state that is as red as West Virginia deserves a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kari-lake-set-to-launch-a-new-run-for-office-report\/\" title=\"Kari Lake to Launch New Political Campaign: Report\">strong conservative fighter<\/a> in the Senate, and that\u2019s exactly who Alex Mooney is,\u201d Cruz added.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaking at an event endorsing Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) for West Virginia Senate on Wednesday, May 2, 2024. (Amy DeLaura \/ Washington Examiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Justice leads 66% to Mooney\u2019s 24%, according to a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/wvmetronews.com\/2024\/04\/12\/justice-maintains-big-lead-over-mooney-in-republican-primary-for-u-s-senate-poll-shows\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>MetroNews West Virginia Poll<\/a>. In an average of polling, Justice has <a href=\"https:\/\/projects.fivethirtyeight.com\/polls\/senate\/2024\/west-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>consistently<\/a> led Mooney by over 30 points throughout the cycle.<\/p>\n<p>However, the fundraising numbers between the two candidates are a bit closer. Justice raised $404,948 during the first quarter and more than $2.4 million this election cycle, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/docquery.fec.gov\/cgi-bin\/forms\/C00839100\/1777686\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/cbs-slammed-for-smearing-ron-desantis-on-60-minutes-one-of-the-more-blatant-political-hatchet-jobs\/\" title=\"CBS Slammed For Smearing Ron DeSantis On \u201860 Minutes\u2019: \u2018One Of The More Blatant Political Hatchet Jobs\u2019\">campaign finance records<\/a><\/a>, leaving him with $1.1 million in cash on hand. Mooney raised $315,978 during the quarter and almost $2.1 million during the cycle and has about $1.3 million in cash on hand.<\/p>\n<p>Mooney continues to slam Justice\u2019s political past as a Democrat. The West Virginia governor has been a Republican since August 2017, when he announced the change after being elected as a Democrat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen the voters see a conservative option here, they leave Jim Justice very fast. They are really looking for options,\u201d Mooney said.<\/p>\n<figure><figcaption>Voters attending an event for Senate candidate Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) saying the Pledge of Allegiance during a campaign event in West Virginia on Wednesday, May 2, 2024 (Amy DeLaura \/ Washington Examiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The West Virginia congressman, who has been crisscrossing the state for 18 months, said he\u2019s going to focus more on the southern part of the state in the remaining days ahead of the May 14 primary.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m going to focus more on the southern counties, where I have not been their congressman,\u201d Mooney said. \u201cI have represented two-thirds of the state in the U.S. House of Representatives, but the southern part, I have not.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In Kearneysville, West Virginia, Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) remains optimistic despite trailing in polls to Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV) ahead of the Senate primary. Mooney dismisses the double-digit gap, insisting it doesn&#8217;t capture the true sentiment of the state.&#8221;There&#8217;s widespread denial among the voters here,&#8221; Mooney asserts confidently<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2657,"featured_media":2236098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Ted-Cruz-Mooney-1024x576.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2236097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Ted-Cruz-Mooney-1024x576.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2236097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2657"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2236097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2236097\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2236098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2236097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2236097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2236097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}