RACE OF THE DAY: W.Va.-01

When former President Bill Clinton rallies for West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin (D) on Monday, standing in his shadow will be Democratic congressional candidate Mike Oliverio, who’s in a tight open-seat race against Republican David McKinley this fall. 

The Democratic state legislator is trying to help his party hang onto a district that hasn’t been represented by a Republican in over 40 years. 

West Virginia’s 1st is solidly conservative, giving Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) a 57-42 percent victory over President Obama in 2008, but as in most of the state, centrist Democrats have reigned here. 

At the start of the year, Republicans were confident that Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.) would be an easy target in 2010 and was destined for defeat, given ethical issues. But Democrats ended up beating them to it, with Oliverio easily ousting Mollohan in the Democratic primary, seemingly improving the party’s chances of hanging onto the seat this fall. 

Oliverio ran to the right in the primary, not sparing Mollohan attacks over ethics and his yes vote on healthcare reform. The challenger sounded the alarm on the deficit and hit his party’s leadership in Washington for not doing enough to control spending. 

The Democrat has drawn a strong challenger in Republican David McKinley, a former chairman of the West Virginia GOP and state lawmaker. McKinley also has the backing of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 

Other conservative-leaning outside groups have weighed in on the side of McKinley, including the American Future Fund, which has run ads warning that Oliverio would fall in line with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and the Democratic leadership should he make it to Congress.  

Both candidates have received attention from prominent members of their party, with House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) coming into the district to campaign for McKinley.

But Clinton’s visit Monday is welcome news for Oliverio, who, like Manchin in the Senate race, has state and national Republicans working to tie him to President Obama and Pelosi. The president’s approval rating in West Virginia is below 40 percent, and disapproval of Congress among voters in the state is staggering. 

In a statement Friday, Oliverio praised Clinton as the president who “presided during the last time our federal budget was under control and our economy was thriving.” Oliverio’s campaign also noted that he was among the first West Virginia legislators to back Hillary Clinton in her 2008 presidential bid.

For Oliverio, who has made clear his opposition to healthcare reform and worked hard to distance himself from the Democratic leadership, this race offers a good test of whether a centrist Democrat can overcome the anti-Obama and -Washington sentiment that runs high in 2010.  

-Updated at 9:05 a.m.