THE RACE TO THE PODIUM

Yes, it is true. The Speaker of the House Bob Kiss will step down after nineteen years in the House of Delegates: catching many off guard with his announcement this past weekend.
Long speculated by various groups outside the "beltway" that the Speaker would indeed seek one more term, this oversight on the part of many lobbyists has left many scattering for cover as the race for the next Speaker heats up.

Although considered too early to speculate, there already appears to be an odd on favorite as rumors begin to circulate and as polls begin to populate the web. The outcome will certainly be determined by a long laundry list of scenarios; including whom gets reelected, who steps down to seek other offices in their home communities, and the role lobbyist will play. The later(lobbyist) will certainly play a key role in the outcome, as they have in the past; prompting numerous trades, economic, and environmental organizations to begin polling legislative members in order to predetermine the outcome of this race.

One or two organizations around the State as part of the endorsement process has even added the following to their survey questions. "As candidate for office are you willing to endorse a candidate for Speaker as recommended by this committee?" Please note, that this line of questioning is common, the language has in fact appeared as the last question on most labor surveys for many years.

I would be remised if I failed to mention the importance of the next Speaker of the House.
Hinging on this race is the continued economic growth here in West Virginia, with more than 8100 new jobs created in the past year. Not to mention improved mine safety measures, debt reduction, fresh water through infrastructure legislation, and future pay equity for all state employees; these issues among numerous other issues should not be taken lightly nor can we allow ourselves to reverse the successes of the past.

Above all, the next Speaker must be one of vision, with limited ties to special interest groups, certainly a candidate can be endorsed by numerous organizations, but in the final analysis the Speaker must have strong understanding of all special interest groups with bias toward none