By all accounts, Tuesday's Republican primaries for governor and U.S. Senator from West Virginia were tantamount to an election in the fall.
Outgoing Gov. Jim Justice, a big winner of the GOP Senate nomination, seems a cinch to succeed retiring Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin and state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who topped a field of three heirs to Mountaineer State political dynasties and should have little trouble succeeding Justice in the statehouse.
But other results yielded strong hints that trouble lies ahead for the heiress to perhaps the most illustrious of all West Virginia political families — two-term Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, daughter of the late and still-loved three-term Gov. Arch Moore and mother and aunt of two well-known candidates in Tuesday's primary.
Rated 67% by the American Conservative Union, Capito is considered far more moderate than fellow Republicans Justice and Morrisey — both of whom are considered solid Trump Republicans. Talk is now common in GOP circles of a primary challenge to Capito when she is next up for election in 2026.
But more than a few Republican activists believe the senator was hurt by the bid for governor by her son, state Delegate Moore Capito, and his defeat at Morrisey's hands by a margin of 33% to 27%.
Car dealer Chris Miller, son of GOP Rep. Carol Miller, sits at 20% and Secretary of State Mac Warner, whose three brothers are high-profile GOP politicians, at 16%.
"Moore should never have run with his mother still in office," said former state GOP Chair Doug McKinney. "Morrisey was leading from start to finish."
As expected, the senator's nephew, state Treasurer Riley Moore, won the GOP nomination for Congress from the open 2nd District. But his margin of 45% against U.S. Army veteran Joe Earley (20.3%), retired Air Force Gen. Chris Walker (14.5%), and businessman Dennis Cain (13%) was less than impressive for a statewide office-holder with a universally known name.
"And Moore and Walker outspent Joe Earley by 4-to-1," noted Earley campaign consultant Holly Robichaud.
Whether Republican voters were saying "No More Moores" in rejecting Capito and nominating Riley Moore by a plurality in a crowded field is debatable. The question will likely be answered in 2026 when and if Capito faces a formidable primary opponent from the right.
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
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