Earl Ray Tomblin
35th Governor of West Virginia
Incumbent
Assumed office November 15, 2010[1][2]
Preceded by	Joe Manchin
President of the Senate of West Virginia
In office January 3, 1995 – November 13, 2011
Preceded by	Keith Burdette
Succeeded by	Jeff Kessler
Personal details
Born	(1952-03-15) March 15, 1952 (age 60) Logan County, West Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Democratic Party
Spouse(s)	Joanne Jaeger
Children	1
Residence	Governor's Mansion
Alma mater	West Virginia University Marshall University

Earl Ray Tomblin (born March 15, 1952) is an American politician who serves as the 35th and current Governor of West Virginia. Tomblin is a member of the Democratic Party. Prior to becoming Governor, Tomblin served as President of the West Virginia State Senate for almost 17 years. He became Acting Governor in 2010 following Joe Manchin's election to the US Senate. On October 4, 2011, Tomblin was elected as Governor of West Virginia in a special election to fill the unexpired term ending in January 2013. He will be up for re-election as Governor in November 2012.

Early life and education[link]

Tomblin is the son of Freda M. (née Jarrell) and Earl Tomblin. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from West Virginia University where he was a member of Kappa Alpha Order and then went along to receive a Master of Business Administration degree from Marshall University.^[3]

House of Delegates and Senate President[link]

Senate Chamber

Tomblin was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates in 1974, and reelected in 1976 and 1978. He won election to the Senate in 1980 and was subsequently re-elected every four years until his election as governor.

Tomblin was elected on January 11, 1995, as the 48th President of the West Virginia Senate. Having served in the position for sixteen years, he was the longest serving Senate President in West Virginia's history. Tomblin became the first Lieutenant Governor of West Virginia upon creation of that designation in 2000.

As a senator, he represented the 7th Senate District encompassing Boone, Lincoln, Logan, and Wayne counties.^[4]

Governor of West Virginia[link]

Tomblin began exercising the duties of governor when Manchin resigned to become the state's United States Senator, filling the seat vacated by the late Senator Robert C. Byrd. Tomblin is the first person to act as governor under West Virginia's current constitution.

While acting as governor, Tomblin retained the title of Senate President as required by the West Virginia Constitution.^[5] Tomblin did not participate in legislative business or accept his legislative salary while acting as governor.^[6] Tomblin also did not preside over the Senate while acting as governor.

Gubernatorial campaign[link]

In 2011, Tomblin stated his desire to run for the office of Governor. Following a ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeals on January 18, 2011, the next gubernatorial election was scheduled for October 4, 2011.^[7] Tomblin was successful in the Democratic Primary, beating a field of six contenders, while Morgantown businessman Bill Maloney emerged as the Republican nominee in the May 14 primary. He went on to win the general election against Maloney and took the oath of office as governor on November 13, 2011.^[8][9] Immediately before taking the oath as governor, Tomblin officially resigned from both the offices of Senate President and state senator.^[10]

Personal life[link]

Tomblin was married on September 8, 1979 to Joanne Jaeger, a native New Yorker who was hired to be president of Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College. They reside in Chapmanville and have one son, Brent. Tomblin attends the First Presbyterian Church of Logan.

Notes[link]

External links[link]

	Biography portal
	Politics portal
	West Virginia portal

• Campaign website
• Office of the Governor of West Virginia
• Biography at the National Governors Association
• Biography, interest group ratings, public statements, vetoes and campaign finances at Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Campaign contributions at FollowTheMoney.org
• Profile at Notable Names Database

v t e Governors of West Virginia Boreman Farnsworth Stevenson Jacob Mathews Jackson Wilson Fleming MacCorkle Atkinson White Dawson Glasscock Hatfield Cornwell Morgan Gore Conley Kump Holt Neely Meadows Patteson Marland Underwood Barron Smith Moore Rockefeller Moore Caperton Underwood Wise Manchin Tomblin

v t e Current statewide elected officials and legislative leaders of West Virginia U.S. Senators Jay Rockefeller Joe Manchin State government Earl Ray Tomblin, Governor Natalie Tennant, Secretary of State Darrell McGraw, Attorney General John Perdue, Treasurer Glen Gainer III, State Auditor Gus Douglass, West Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Senate Jeff Kessler, President of the Senate John Unger, Majority Leader Mike Hall, Minority Leader House Rick Thompson, Speaker of the House Brent Boggs, Majority Leader Tim Armstead, Minority Leader Supreme Court Menis Ketchum, Chief Justice Thomas McHugh Robin Davis Brent D. Benjamin Margaret Workman AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY

Bill Maloney is a businessman and was the candidate for the Republican Party in the 2011 special election for governor of West Virginia, in which he lost.

Maloney co-founded a drilling company in 1984. He was involved in the Plan B rescue attempt during the 2010 Chilean mine disaster. Maloney has never held public office before. He lives in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Business career[link]

With a business partner, Maloney founded a company called North American Drillers in Morgantown in 1984. The company specialized in drilling large-diameter shafts for the coal, oil and natural gas industries. The business grew to 150 employees when Maloney sold his interest in 2006. Maloney has also invested in start-up companies.

Chilean mine rescue[link]

Maloney used his drilling expertise in support of the Plan B attempt to rescue the 33 trapped Chilean miners. Maloney joined the Center Rock team led by Brandon Fisher. Maloney had invested in Fisher's company as start-up. The Plan B effort was ultimately successful, and the miners were saved.^[1]

Since returning to the United States, Maloney founded the Mine Rescue Drilling Fund, which supports mine rescues efforts and mine rescue technology in the United States.

Campaign for West Virginia governor, 2011[link]

Maloney declared his campaign for governor in February. He ran in the special election to fill the unexpired term of Joe Manchin. ^[2][3][4] Maloney's name was listed first on the Republican primary ballot.^[5]

Maloney is a conservative Republican. He wanted to reform the state's tax structure and legal system.^[6][7][8]

Maloney won the May 14 primary election with 45% of the vote, but lost the general election to incumbent governor Earl Ray Tomblin by less than 3%.^[9]

Personal life[link]

Maloney is married to Sharon, and they have two adult daughters. He has a degree in industrial engineering from Lehigh University. Maloney is a member of Chestnut Ridge Church.^{[citation needed]}

References[link]

External links[link]

• Maloney for West Virginia campaign site