Folks, this is like Arkansas all over again. I feel its like Arkansas in that, despite our total control of the process, we've come out with a less-than great map.
http://www.legis.state.wv.us/...
Here are the 2010 Senate numbers:
Manchin/Raese
WV-01- 54.5/43.4
WV-02- 50.5/47.7
WV-03- 57.1/40.9
2008 President Numbers:
Given that Obama starkly underperformed in Applachia, these numbers aren't as relevant, but still interesting. My new numbers are only based on the 2-party vote, so they aren't 100% accurate, but fairly close.
McCain/Obama [current districts]
WV-01- 55.4/44.6 [56.6/41.4]
WV-02- 57.9/42.1 [54.5/43.7]
WV-03- 56.4/43.6 [55.6/43.5]
My take:
WV-02 is pretty much the GOP vote sink, but WV-01 is only slightly more Democratic than the state as a whole.
They should have kept Taylor, Harrison, Barbour and Tucker in the 1st; they all voted for Oliverio last year. Instead, the 1st reaches down to take in Jackson, Roane, Wirt and Calhoun; all of those counties have been voting for Capito.
My worry is that, while they've essentially conceded WV-02, but Capito has enough of a base left in WV-01 to be competitive. Still, some good news is that WV-01 is friendlier on the Presidential level.
For reference, here is a map of the 2010 House results by county:
My main issue with the current proposal is that it dumps 4 counties that voted for Oliverio (the 4 blue counties just south of deeply blue Marion county) into WV-02, which is essentially the GOP vote sink. Those 4 counties could be better used in the 1st district to help a Democrat.
Furthermore, the 1st expands southward to take in many counties that voted strongly for Capito.