Jim Justice looks past his business struggles and declares himself a Senate winner in West Virginia

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — More than a month before the Nov. 5 election, Jim Justice declared victory in his Senate race in deeply Republican West Virginia, a chest thump at the same time the two-term governor was in a behind-the-scenes fight to keep some of his family businesses in good standing.

In a state where Donald Trump won every county in the past two presidential elections, Justice crowned himself as the runaway successor to retiring Sen. Joe Manchin, whose seat had been one of the last lines of defense for Democrats trying to preserve their slim majority.

“I say over and over, judge me by my deeds,” Justice told reporters on Sept. 19.

That challenge could have had another meaning, serving as a reminder about the banks, creditors, federal agencies and others who have hounded Justice for years to pay his debts, including loan defaults, late payments, court fines. He's faced threats of foreclosure. Early in his administration, the governor was sued for not living in the governor's mansion in Charleston as required by law, and when he was there, his list of accomplishments wasn't particularly long or noteworthy.

Most recently, Justice's family paid a debt obligation to ward off a collection company's threat to auction off his Greenbrier resort’s historic hotel.

And yet Justice's boasting probably was justified. The politician with the folksy manner and a pet bulldog named Babydog by his side is in line for a seat that national Democrats pretty much conceded as soon as Manchin decided not to run again. Republicans had made it a top target, and leaders of both parties had come to believe that even Manchin couldn't win a third full term as a Democrat in a state that had become among the most Republican in the nation.

According to AdImpact, which tracks campaign spending data, Democrats have been outspent on the race by Republicans by more than a 5-to-1 margin, with Democrat Glenn Elliott receiving less than $3 million in help from outside groups.

Whether voters ignore Justice's baggage remains to be seen. Elliott was surprised by Justice's public declaration of victory and his refusal to hold a debate. Elliott, a former Wheeling mayor who was endorsed by Manchin before Manchin switched from the Democrat Party to an independent, said voters deserve to know more about Justice, including his finances.

“One of the frustrating parts of the campaign is all the problems the governor has, for whatever reason, does not seem to be sinking in with your average voter,” Elliott said.

In refusing to debate, Justice simply said he was too busy.

“I want to run through the finish line as the governor," he said. “That’s all there is to it."

As governor, Justice pushed through income tax cuts and billions for road repairs and construction. He played up high state revenue surpluses, job creation and tourism.

But he has been criticized for underfunding public schools and the state’s foster care system, and advocates for low-income residents say he has failed to meet the challenges facing the neediest citizens. During the pandemic, some lawmakers attacked Justice’s prize giveaways for people who got vaccinated against the coronavirus as “wasteful spending.”

West Virginia has one of the highest poverty rates in the United States. It also lost the highest percentage of residents among any state over the past decade, an exodus that cost it a seat in Congress, and continued through Justice's second term, according to U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for 2023.

While it's not certain how far back Justice's family debts go, they predate his time as governor and deprive him the right to call himself a billionaire.

“I’m surprised that the liabilities in his business and other things have really not undermined his popularity,” said Robert Rupp, a retired West Virginia Wesleyan College political history professor.

Lawsuits filed more than a decade ago sought unpaid contracting bills or debts owed from Justice family mining operations in Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia. Just before he was elected in 2016, Justice’s coal companies owed millions in back taxes to some of Appalachia’s most impoverished counties. His companies also had millions in West Virginia state tax liens.

The challenges kept piling up, hitting a peak this year. Earlier this month Justice's family said it resolved debts to avoid the foreclosure on the Greenbrier hotel, which has hosted presidents and royalty at the resort he bought out of bankruptcy in 2009. A union official at the Greenbrier said in August that Justice's family was at least $2.4 million behind in payments to an employees' health insurance fund, putting workers' coverage at risk.

Justice, who switched parties seven months after taking office, has repeatedly said efforts to seize the hotel were political revenge. The state Democratic Party said it was "a direct consequence of his own financial incompetence.”

Elliott, looking to spread the word, embarked on a summer tour of all 55 counties. Justice conducted few fall campaign stops, instead making economic development announcements and school visits, bringing along Babydog.

Elliott said residents should pay attention to who Justice is, “not the one they see on TV with the dog and the checks to hand out at different ribbon cuttings. But the one who doesn’t pay his bills and doesn’t pay his taxes. Doesn’t respect the process. Doesn’t show up to work. Doesn’t think the voters deserve a chance to see him debate and basically takes their votes for granted.”

Justice's campaign has raised $4.3 million, compared with about $800,000 for Elliott. Justice has stuck to the path he took during an easy GOP primary win over U.S. Rep Alex Mooney.

Even Justice marvels at how smoothly his ride has been.

“I don’t want to say this in an egotistical way," Justice told reporters last month. "In the primary, I didn’t put a sign out. Think about this for a second. I didn’t put one single sign up, and I won by 35-plus points. The people of this state know me. They know me, and they know me really well. I have done almost zero campaigning.

“From the Senate race standpoint and everything, the Senate race is over. We’re going to win the race, and we’re going to win the race going away.”