U.S. Senate
Elections 2010 at the State Capitol in
Charleston, West Virginia, July 2, 2010 Due to Senator
Robert Byrd's declining health, there was speculation about what Manchin would do if Byrd died. Manchin refused to comment on the subject until Byrd's death, except to say that he would not appoint himself to the Senate. Byrd died on June 28, 2010, and Manchin appointed
Carte Goodwin, his 36-year-old legal adviser, to the Senate on July 16. On July 20, 2010, Manchin announced he would seek the Senate seat in a special election for the remaining two years of Byrd's term. In the August 28 Democratic special primary, he defeated former Democratic congressman and former
West Virginia Secretary of State Ken Hechler. In the special general election, he defeated Republican businessman
John Raese, 53.5%-43.4%.
2012 Manchin ran for reelection to a full-term in 2012. According to the Democratic firm
Public Policy Polling, early polling found Manchin heavily favored, leading Representative
Shelley Moore Capito 50–39, 2010 opponent
John Raese 60–31, and Congressman
David McKinley 57–28. Manchin did not endorse President
Barack Obama for reelection in
2012, saying that he had "some real differences" with the presumptive nominees of both major parties. Manchin found fault with Obama's
economic and
energy policies and questioned
Romney's understanding of the "challenges facing ordinary people". Manchin defeated Raese and Mountain Party candidate Bob Henry Baber, winning 61% of the vote.
2018 In 2018, Manchin ran for reelection. He was challenged in the Democratic primary by
Paula Jean Swearengin. Swearengin is an activist and coal miner's daughter who was supported by former members of
Bernie Sanders's 2016 presidential campaign. She criticized Manchin for voting with Republicans and supporting Trump's policies. Manchin won the primary with 70% of the vote. On the Republican side, Manchin was challenged by
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey. In August 2017, Morrisey publicly asked Manchin to resign from the Senate Democratic leadership. Manchin responded, "I don't give a shit, you understand?" to a
Charleston Gazette-Mail reporter. "I just don't give a shit. Don't care if I get elected, don't care if I get defeated, how about that?" Manchin won the November 6 general election, defeating Morrisey 49.57%-46.26%.
2024 Manchin did not run for reelection in 2024. He indicated that he would not be leaving politics, saying he would be "traveling the country and speaking out, to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle, and bring Americans together". On May 31, 2024, Manchin announced that he would leave the Democratic Party and file as an
independent but would remain a member of the
Senate Democratic Caucus, alongside fellow independent Senators
Bernie Sanders,
Angus King, and
Kyrsten Sinema. By remaining in the Senate Democratic Caucus, Manchin remained chair of the
Senate Energy Committee for the remainder of the
118th United States Congress. In the statement issued alongside his announcement filing as an independent, Manchin accused both the Republican and Democratic parties of "partisan extremism" and of "leaving West Virginia behind for partisan politics". He said that to "stay true to myself and remain committed to put country before party, I have decided to register as an independent with no party affiliation and continue to fight for America's sensible majority". With his decision, the Senate had the most independents in a single Congress since the ratification of the
17th Amendment.
Tenure Obama years (2010–2017) Manchin was first sworn in to the U.S. Senate by Vice President
Joe Biden on November 15, 2010, succeeding interim senator
Carte Goodwin.
Trump years (2017–2021) ,
Shelley Moore Capito, and
David McKinley in 2017 in 2018 According to
FiveThirtyEight, which tracks congressional votes, Manchin voted with Trump's position 50.4% of the time during his presidency. Manchin initially welcomed Trump's presidency, saying, "He'll correct the trading policies, the imbalance in our trade policies, which are horrible." He supported the idea of Trump "calling companies to keep them from moving factories overseas". Manchin voted for most of Trump's cabinet nominees. He was the only Democrat to vote to confirm Attorney General
Jeff Sessions and Treasury Secretary
Steven Mnuchin, one of two Democrats to vote to confirm
Scott Pruitt as
EPA Administrator, and one of three to vote to confirm Secretary of State
Rex Tillerson. Manchin voted for Trump's first two Supreme Court nominees,
Neil Gorsuch and
Brett Kavanaugh. In the former case, he was one of three Democrats (alongside
Joe Donnelly and
Heidi Heitkamp) to vote to confirm; in the latter case, he was the only one. He opposed the nomination of
Amy Coney Barrett, citing the closeness to the upcoming presidential election. Manchin voted to convict in both
Trump impeachment trials.
Biden years (2021–2025) According to
data journalism site
FiveThirtyEight, Manchin had voted with Biden's position 87.9% of the time as of January 2023. Because the Senate was evenly divided between Democratic and Republican members during the early portion of the Biden administration, Manchin's ability to deny Democrats a majority made him very influential. In December 2021, Manchin signaled that he was not likely to vote for the Biden-supported
Build Back Better Act, saying, "I cannot vote to continue with this piece of legislation. I just can't. I've tried everything humanly possible. I can't get there." Manchin named growing inflation, the
national debt, and the
Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus as reasons for opposition. White House Press Secretary
Jen Psaki responded that Manchin's comments "represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position, and a breach of his commitments to the president and the senator's colleagues in the House and Senate". In December 2021, Manchin expressed displeasure with the tactics Democrats used in their attempts to pressure him into supporting the Build Back Better Act. In an interview with
Politico, he said, "They figure, 'surely to God we can move one person. Surely, we can badger and beat one person up.' Well, guess what? I'm from West Virginia. I'm not from where they're from, [where] they can just beat the living crap out of people and think they'll be submissive... I just got to the wit's end... It's not the president, it's the staff. They drove some things and they put some things out that were absolutely inexcusable". In January 2022,
The Hill reported that Manchin "spent heavily on private security" during the last three months of 2021 "as he became a prime target for progressive protesters angry at his role blocking a reconciliation package in the Senate". According to
The Hill, "climate change protesters surrounded Manchin's car in a parking garage in early November. In October, protesters in kayaks swarmed Manchin's yacht, parked at a Washington marina where he lives". Furthermore, "a source close to Manchin told The Hill the senator and his family had been subjected to specific threats, both in Washington and in West Virginia". On March 25, 2022, Manchin announced that he would vote to confirm
Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. Manchin expressed his support for the Inflation Reduction Act on July 27, 2022. On August 7, 2022, the Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act on a 51–50 vote, with Manchin voting in favor and Vice President
Kamala Harris breaking a tie. On August 16, 2022, President Joe Biden signed the Act into law. On November 9, 2023, Manchin announced that he would not seek reelection in 2024. He said that his decision was made "after months of deliberation and long conversations" with his family, adding that he would instead be "traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together". In early 2024, Manchin announced he was registering as independent, Manchin said his biggest regret during Biden's presidency was voting for the
American Rescue Plan, saying that it helped increased
inflation. Manchin was succeeded by West Virginia Governor
Jim Justice, a Republican.
Committee assignments •
Committee on Appropriations •
Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies •
Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government •
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies •
Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies •
Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies •
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (chair) • As chair of the full committee, Manchin serves as an
ex officio member of all subcommittees. •
Committee on Armed Services •
Subcommittee on Cybersecurity •
Subcommittee on Strategic Forces •
Committee on Veterans' Affairs Previous committee assignments •
Committee on Appropriations (2017–2025) •
Committee on Armed Services (2010–2025) •
Special Committee on Aging (2011–2013; 2013–2015) •
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (2013–2015) •
Committee on the Budget (2010–2011) •
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (2015–2017) •
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (2011–2025) •
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (2010–2011) •
Committee on Rules and Administration (2010–2011) •
Committee on Veterans' Affairs (2015–2025) •
Select Committee on Intelligence (2017–2019) •
Joint Select Committee on Solvency of Multiemployer Pension Plans (2019–2021)
Caucus memberships •
Congressional Coalition on Adoption •
Senate Taiwan Caucus Funding Manchin received the most funding from the oil and gas industry of any senator from May 2020 to May 2021, including $1.6 million in donations from fossil fuel
PACs. He also received funding from individuals and PACs connected to law and real estate, among others. In June 2021,
ExxonMobil lobbyist Keith McCoy said that Manchin was one of its key targets for funding and that he participated in weekly meetings with the company. == Presidential politics ==