WV Reps Launch Freedom Caucus To Take On Fake GOPers

A coalition of West Virginia Republican lawmakers is launching a state freedom caucus to “restore constitutional federalism” to the state’s GOP-controlled government, The Federalist has learned. This makes West Virginia the 14th state to create such a freedom caucus.

“Two-hundred-fifty years ago … American patriots organized to resist unjust taxation, gun confiscation, and the lack of self-determination, and I think it’s especially fitting that we are launching the West Virginia Freedom Caucus on the 250th anniversary [of our nation] to restore those same rights back to West Virginia,” West Virginia Freedom Caucus (WVFC) Chair and Republican Rep. Chris Anders told The Federalist.

Officially launched Thursday, the WVFC was created to tackle a problem often witnessed in Republican-dominated legislatures in “red states,” according to Anders. That is, when “you look at how the legislature actually governs … they’re really not pushing a true conservative agenda.”

“Down here, we have way too many undocumented Democrats [in the GOP]. The voters sent us here to Charleston to govern in line with the Constitution and to push conservative principles,” Anders said. “We’re looking to actually restore constitutional federalism at the state level here by doing major [legislative] efforts — not just tweaking the system.”

State Freedom Caucus Network President Andy Roth, whose organization helped launch and will coordinate with the WVFC, echoed similar sentiments in his remarks to The Federalist. He specifically noted Democrats in red states like West Virginia “deceiv[e] the voters by putting an ‘R’ after their name” when running for office.

This produces a scenario in which “all great conservative policies … [that] should be passing swiftly and easily and getting signed by the governor [are] not because there are so many Democrats who have infiltrated the Republican Party,” Roth said.

Despite possessing supermajorities in the House (91-9) and Senate (32-2), West Virginia Republicans have repeatedly squandered conservative priorities supported by the GOP base.

During last year’s legislative session, for example, the House defeated legislative efforts supported by Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey to repeal the state’s certificate-of-need process, which is a “state regulatory mechanism[] for approving major capital expenditures and projects for certain health care facilities,” according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The Heritage Foundation has previously noted that such regulatory laws foster “anti-competition” and “result in market consolidation … among America’s hospitals.”

The state House also shot down legislation backed by Morrisey that sought to grant religious exemptions to state schools’ vaccine requirements and reform the process by which parents obtain medical exemptions from health care practitioners.

Such antics appear to have carried into the state’s 2026 legislative session. On Tuesday, the House — with 91 GOP members — narrowly adopted an amendment to strengthen immigration-related legislation. The passed version of the bill that will now be considered by the Senate boosts the use of E-Verify and increases penalties on employers who “knowingly and willfully” fail to maintain records documenting their employees’ immigration status.

According to Anders, the WVFC will initially include six members across both chambers of the state legislature. The Republican representative expressed hope the caucus will add new members following this year’s upcoming election cycle. He noted that the state is seeing “probably the largest number of insurgent candidates against the undocumented Democrats and the establishment Republicans [in primaries] that we’ve seen in the state in probably 20 years.”

Among the policy priorities being championed by the caucus are eliminating “as many taxes as possible” so West Virginians can “actually take care of themselves,” according to Anders. The WVFC chair also said the caucus will focus on any policy designed to reduce the “size and scope of government.”

Included in the list of measures introduced by Anders this session is a constitutional amendment allowing the legislature to repeal state property taxes and bills requiring local and state officials to turn illegal immigrants in to federal immigration officials, prohibiting the use and sale of abortifacients, and more.

While Anders and Roth expressed optimism about the WVFC’s launch, it’s unclear how the body and its mission will be received by the state’s Republican leadership. Anders said he expects Morrisey — whom he has known for more than a decade and claimed is “one of the [country’s] most conservative governors” — “will be welcoming” to the WVFC. The GOP lawmaker indicated similar optimism about a positive response from Senate President Randy Smith, whose chamber he said “is more conservative than the House currently is.”

“I do not expect [House Speaker Roger Hanshaw] to be receptive at all. In fact, I expect [the House] to be quite hostile,” Anders predicted.

The offices of Morrisey and Smith did not respond to The Federalist’s requests for comment. Hanshaw’s office acknowledged receipt of The Federalist’s request for comment but did not provide a response by deadline.

Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood