The 2016 West Virginia Democratic presidential primary was held on May 10 in the U.S. state of West Virginia as one of the Democratic Party's primaries ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

In a heavily white, working-class state where voters were angry about the Obama administration's policies, Bernie Sanders easily outpolled Clinton.

Sanders's West Virginia victory came from strong support among workers in the coal industry; fifty-five percent of West Virginia's Democratic voters with coal workers in their households voted for Sanders, while only 29 percent voted for Clinton.

"[14] Analysts speculated Sanders's win in West Virginia came not from support for his own coal policies, but from a rejection of the Obama administration's.

[15] Sanders was also helped by large numbers of Republican cross-over voters.