At Stake in Summers County & West Virginia
Summers County is shrinking and aging, and as our economy shifts toward tourism, the decisions made now will shape whether families and jobs stay here. Across West Virginia, energy policy, infrastructure, and the drug crisis all hit rural communities first—so practical, local solutions matter.
At Stake in Summers County
We are shrinking. The county counted 11,959 people in 2020 and roughly 11,532 by 2025. Every young family that leaves takes a classroom seat, a church pew, and a paycheck with it.
We are aging. More than one in four residents is 65 or older and the median age is near 49. Fixed incomes are the first thing inflation and rising utility bills eat into.
Our economy now runs on the rivers. The New, the Greenbrier, and the Bluestone meet at Hinton, and tourism has largely replaced the railroad payroll that built this town.
The railroad was given to us; what replaces it has to be built by us, not administered to us.
One county, one high school. Should Summers County Comprehensive High School consider developing a thorough vocational, technical, and agricultural curriculum that supports the future county economy?
At Stake for West Virginia
Coal and natural gas still keep the lights on and powers our economy. Abundant energy promotes low prices, economic growth, and American exports.
Energy policy written elsewhere lands here as lost jobs and higher bills, paid in Mountain State paychecks and in what it takes to heat a house in January.
The Republican agenda is to make the US a producing economy, not a consuming economy.
Roads, water, and energy are economic infrastructure, not luxuries. In a county this rural they decide whether a business stays or leaves.
The drug crisis has taken too many of ours. Hard enforcement against traffickers, paired with real support for treatment and recovery.