West Virginia Watch

The U.S. Supreme Court on April 9, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)The hotly contested U.S. Postal Service rule restricting mail-in voting usurps Congress’ authority, as well as states’ power to administer elections, more than 250 current and former members of Congress said in a filing to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday. All 47 members of the U.S. Senate Democratic Caucus, 199 current House Democrats and 15 former House Republicans signed the friend-of-the-court brief opposi

Sen. Ryan Weld, R-Brooke, plans to introduce legislation related to the arrest of a Brooke County principal, who allegedly played recording devices in girls’ locker rooms. (Will Price/West Virginia Legislative Photography)After a Brooke County high school principal was arrested and charged for reportedly placing recording devices in girls’ locker rooms, a state senator said the ordeal has exposed a gap in state code regarding punishment for those  covertly filming others. Sen. Ryan Weld, R-Brook

President Donald Trump has targeted Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier in his trade war with Canada. In this photo, an Air Canada Express Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft departs Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. (Photo by Getty Images/Yassine Bahammou)WASHINGTON — Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods kicked in Tuesday, escalating a trade war with one of the largest U.S. trading partners that President Donald Trump continued to antagonize over the holiday weekend. Trump poste

West Virginia State Treasurer Larry Pack addresses reporters about his 2026 legislative priorities during a news conference Nov. 17, 2025, in Charleston, West Virginia. (Photo by Lori Kersey/West Virginia Watch)State Treasurer Larry Pack said his office will “aggressively oppose” any attempt to block universal expansion of the Hope Scholarship following a recent lawsuit from parents seeking to block new applicants.  Several parents of Mingo County students sued the state Treasurer’s Office last

A child looks up at a masked federal agent as his parents are spoken to before being let go after a court hearing in immigration court in New York City in September 2025. The Trump administration’s immigration arrest program is creating a chilling effect, causing fear and isolation among families who are avoiding interacting with systems — including by missing critical pediatric health appointments. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)In Minnesota, an elementary schooler has gone without

A server room in a data center. (Photo by Getty Images)The West Virginia Department of Commerce has approved and certified two separate high impact data center projects — one previously unannounced — for Mason County, Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced at the state Chamber of Commerce’s business summit last week. One of those certifications is for the proposed Nscale Monarch Campus, in Point Pleasant. Developers for that project are proposing to build a data center complex powered by a natural gas

Computers line the walls of a reentry center inside the Women’s Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Vandalia, Mo. Incarcerated women preparing for release can use the computers to search for employment and other resources while on parole. (Photo by Amanda Watford/Stateline)Women on parole report higher rates of housing instability, poor health and serious mental health and substance use disorders than men on parole and women who weren’t on parole, according to a new analysis

The Lincoln Walks at Midnight Statue sits in front of the West Virginia state Capitol building in Charleston, West Virginia. (Photo by Lexi Browning/West Virginia Watch)A new lawsuit brought by Mingo County parents seeks to stop universal expansion of the Hope Scholarship, the state’s education voucher program. The parents say their children’s school, which is set to close next year, has been impacted by public schools’ financial distress while the state spent millions of dollars expanding the H

Olympian David Hearn, center left, walks out of District of Columbia Superior Court with his attorneys after a hearing on Sept. 4, 2026. (Photo by Ariana Figueora/States Newsroom)WASHINGTON — A District of Columbia Superior Court judge Friday seemed inclined to bar any new felony charges against former Olympian David Hearn, after the Trump administration accused the Maryland man of damaging part of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. D.C. Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman raised concerns about

Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced Friday that $2.4 million of West Virginia's Rural Health Transformation Program funding will go toward three organizations to expand employer-based health services. (Screenshot courtesy Morrisey's office)The state of West Virginia will award $2.4 million of its federal Rural Health Transformation Program funding to three organizations to expand worksite and employer-based health services.  It’s the first announced allocation of the state’s funding from the federa

Jose Palma holds the work authorization cards of a Salvadoran member of the National TPS Alliance. The individual has renewed work permits 14 times since Temporary Protected Status was granted for El Salvador in 2001, submitting a background check and fingerprints with each renewal cycle. (Photo by Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom)WASHINGTON — For years, Jose Palma has advocated for immigrants with Temporary Protected Status who hail from countries deemed too unstable for return. But as the Trump

Kathleen Sullivan Kelley rides one of her horses at her Rio Blanco County ranch. (Photo courtesy of Kathleen Sullivan Kelley) Stories From The States is a weekly podcast from States Newsroom that explores, through personal stories, how people and communities across America are being affected by government decisions. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts. In Colorado, officials in the city of Boulder and Boulder County have filed a lawsuit a

Three states this year have enacted laws that require or allow schools to use panic alarms to quickly summon emergency responders. Ten other states have such laws and a dozen more are considering them. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)Three states this year have enacted laws that require or allow schools to use mobile, wearable, wireless or silent panic alarms to quickly summon emergency responders. The new laws in Illinois, Virginia and West Virginia bring the number of states with

The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 9, 2024. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to overturn a lower court and allow it to enforce a U.S. Postal Service rule restricting mail-in voting. The trial judge, Indira Talwani of the U.S. District of Massachusetts, prejudged the rule before it was final when she issued a temporary restraining order last month and upheld it last week, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote. The rule o

U.S. Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., and Gov. Patrick Morrisey speak at the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting and business summit at The Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, on Sept. 3, 2026. (The West Virginia Chamber of Commerce photo)WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — While Sen. Jim Justice considers challenging Gov. Patrick Morrisey in the 2028 gubernatorial primary, the pair took the stage Thursday at The Greenbrier to deliver economic-focused talks with a flav

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. (Photo by West Virginia Legislative Photography)West Virginia Supreme Court Justice Bill Wooton was treated for dehydration and released from Charleston Area Medical Center Wednesday evening, hours after he had a “medical incident” while on the bench, a spokesman for the court said Thursday.  Justice William R. Wooton Oral arguments before the court were canceled Wednesday, the first day of the court’s fall term, after Wooton, 81, had the medical incid

Karen Kost took part in the North Dakota primary election early voting available June 3, 2026, at City Hall in Casselton, North Dakota. (Photo by Dan Koeck/North Dakota Monitor)WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said earlier this year he’d “do anything necessary to make sure we have honest elections” this fall, declining to rule out sending the National Guard or federal law enforcement officers to polling locations throughout the country. Those comments came a few months after Trump casually an

A baby crawls on the carpet at the Alabama Birth Center in Huntsville, Alabama. In 14 states, the closure of the closest rural hospital or its obstetric unit would force Medicaid patients to drive an hour or more to get to another hospital that provides inpatient maternity care, a new study says. (Photo by Eric Schultz for the Alabama Reflector)In 14 states, the closure of the closest rural hospital or its obstetric unit would force many Medicaid patients to drive an hour or more to get to anot

A Utah County election worker picks up mailed ballots from the United States Postal Service office on Oct. 26, 2020 in Provo, Utah. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)President Donald Trump’s executive order placing new restrictions on mail-in voting would assign state officials a Herculean task to reach compliance before the crucial midterm elections. The order directed the U.S. Postal Service to strictly regulate the envelope design of mail-in ballots and to collect voter data from each state

The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 29, 2024. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)A federal judge in Maryland Wednesday blocked President Donald Trump’s second attempt to redefine birthright citizenship.  In a preliminary injunction, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman barred the Trump administration from carrying out the president’s executive order that would deny citizenship to babies born in the United States to parents deemed part of a designated terrorist organization or to parents