Democratic Wheeling mayor Glenn Elliott and Republican Governor Jim Justice were seeking their first term in office.

Manchin, a Democrat until his final year in the senate, announced he would not run for re-election shortly before switching to independent.

[2] He endorsed Elliott, who won the Democratic nomination with 45% of the vote against political activist Zach Shrewsbury and businessman Don Blankenship.

[13] After Justice announced his bid for the seat in April 2023, Elections Daily labeled this race as "Safe Republican" due to his strong polling advantage against Manchin.

[7] Since Manchin announced his retirement, all major outlets have rated this seat as an expected easy flip to GOP control.