Shelley Moore Capito

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Shelley Moore Capito
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from West Virginia's 2nd district
In office 2001–present
Preceded by	Bob Wise
Born	November 26, 1953 (1953-11-26) (age 54) Glen Dale, West Virginia
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Charles Lewis
Religion	Presbyterian

Shelley Moore Capito (born Shelley Wellons Moore on November 26, 1953) is an American politician. She has been a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives since 2001, representing the West Virginia's 2nd congressional district (map). The district stretches from the Ohio River in the west to the Eastern Panhandle, which borders with Virginia and Maryland. She is the only Republican in the West Virginia congressional delegation and is the first Republican woman elected to Congress from West Virginia.

Capito was born in Glen Dale, West Virginia. A resident of Charleston, Capito is the daughter of Shelley Riley and Arch A. Moore, Jr., who served three terms as that state's Governor (1969–1977; 1985–1989). She was educated at Duke University and at the University of Virginia and served two terms in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

[edit] Election to Congress

When 2nd district Congressman Bob Wise decided to make what turned out to be a successful run for governor in 2000, Capito won the Republican nomination largely because of her father's legacy. She narrowly defeated multi-millionaire trial lawyer Jim Humphreys largely by running ads in the Washington, D.C., media market, which takes in eight of West Virginia's counties, most of which are in the 2nd District. She was the first Republican to represent West Virginia in Congress since 1983, as well as the first woman elected to Congress from West Virginia in her own right. She was re-elected in 2002 against Humphreys and 2004 against former newscaster Erik Wells by large margins, becoming the first West Virginia Republican to win reelection to Congress since her father, who represented the 1st district in the state's northern region from 1957 to 1969.

[edit] Congressional service

In the House, she is a former chairwoman of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues. Like her father, her voting record has been moderate/centrist.^{[citation needed]} She is a member of both the Republican Main Street Partnership (which supports stem-cell research) and The Wish List, (Women In the Senate and House), a group of pro-choice Republican Party (GOP) women. She is the only pro-choice (although personally against abortion^{[citation needed]}) member of West Virginia's House delegation. She also has support from organized labor^{[citation needed]}, a rarity among congressional Republicans.

Capito is one of the three members who oversee the House page program. In early October, 2006 she responded to a subpoena by the House Ethics Committee to give testimony regarding her role in the Mark Foley scandal.^[1] She has been critical of any attempts to hide any wrongdoing related to the Mark Foley scandal from her and her fellow committee members, stating "I deeply regret not being made aware of this situation as a member of the Page Board."^[2]

Capito won re-election in 2006 over former West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Mike Callaghan. She had briefly been mentioned as a possible challenger to longtime Senator Robert Byrd, but instead opted to run for reelection to the House. Capito represents most of the territory that Byrd represented from 1953 until his election to the Senate in 1959.

There is strong speculation that if Sen. Jay Rockefeller or Sen. Robert Byrd choose not to seek re-election or are unable to complete their terms, Capito will run for the U.S. Senate. Members of the GOP urged her to run against Sen. Jay Rockefeller in 2008, but she refused, noting the strong standing of Rockefeller in West Virginia due to his previous position as the Governor of West Virginia.^{[citation needed]} Long time Byrd West Virginia office manager Anne Barth has decided to run against Capito in the November election. She has won the Democratic Party nomination.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• U.S. Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito, U.S. House site

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• SourceWatch Congresspedia — Shelley Moore Capito profile
• Shelley Moore Capito for US. Congress, Campaign site