CLARKSBURG — The race in the First Congressional District between incumbent Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W.Va., and Republican challenger Chris Wakim has serious and somewhat unique national implications, political analysts say.
That’s because it is one of the few seats in the House where a Democrat is seen as somewhat vulnerable, said Amy Walter, senior editor for the Cook Political Report.
Also, the outcome of the First District race could sway control of the House, she said.
There are two things that have made this race one to watch, she said.
“First is ... the focus on Mollohan and the earmarks and the controversy that has stemmed from that,” Walter said. “The other is that quite frankly this is a district that by the numbers is now a pretty Republican district.”
The campaign comes on the heels of allegations of improper financial disclosures by Mollohan. The allegations were raised by the National Legal and PolicyCenter, which filed a 500-page report against the congressman with federal prosecutors.
Walter bases her analysis of the First Congressional District’s leaning Republican on the way it has supported President Bush in the last two presidential races. Bush received even more votes in 2004 than in 2000, she said.
It is still too early to see if Republicans will get behind Wakim with national money, said Dr. Allan Hammock, chair of the political science department at West VirginiaUniversity.
“Wakim won’t be blown away by (Mollohan’s) money,” Hammock said. “But he still has an uphill fight because of Mollohan’s incumbency and the various projects he has been able to deliver to the district over the years.”
Thus far, Mollohan has raised more than $940,000, compared to Wakim’s $420,000, according to fund-raising figures released in July.