Mark Hunt (politician)
{{Short description|American politician (born 1960)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Mark Hunt
| office = Auditor of West Virginia
| governor = Patrick Morrisey
| term_start = January 13, 2025
| term_end =
| predecessor = JB McCuskey
| successor =
| state_senate1 = West Virginia
| district1 = 8th
| alongside1 = Glenn Jeffries
| term_start1 = December 1, 2022
| term_end1 = January 13, 2025
| predecessor1 = Richard Lindsay
| successor1 = T. Kevan Bartlett
| office2 = Member of the West Virginia House of Delegates
| term_start2 = December 1, 2004
| term_end2 = December 1, 2014
| predecessor2 = Ann Calvert
Dan Foster
| successor2 = Larry Rowe
Brad White
| constituency2 = 30th district (2004–2012)
36th district (2012–2014)
| term_start3 = December 1, 1994
| term_end3 = December 1, 2000
| predecessor3 = Nelson Sorah
| successor3 = Carrie Webster
| constituency3 = 31st district
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1960|1|23}}
| birth_place = Charleston, West Virginia, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| party = Democratic (before 2022)
Republican (2022–present)
| education = University of Charleston (BA)
Marshall University (MA)
University of the District of Columbia (JD)
| website = {{url|HuntForWV.com|Campaign website}}
}}
Mark A. Hunt{{cite web |url= http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/52313 |title= Danny Wells' Biography |publisher= Project Vote Smart |access-date= March 31, 2014}} (born January 23, 1960, in Charleston, West Virginia) is an American politician who is currently serving as the West Virginia State Auditor since 2025. As a Republican, he served in the West Virginia Senate, representing the 8th district from 2022 to 2025. From 2012 to 2014, Hunt was a Democratic member of the West Virginia House of Delegates representing District 36 from 2012 to 2014. Hunt served consecutively from January 2009 until January 2013, and non-consecutively from January 1995 until January 2001 and from January 2005 until January 2007 in District 30 and District 31 seats. Hunt was a candidate for West Virginia Senate in 2000 and a candidate for the United States House of Representatives for West Virginia's 2nd congressional district in 2006. In 2024, Hunt was elected West Virginia State Auditor.
Education
Hunt earned his BA from the University of Charleston, his MA from Marshall University, and his JD from the David A. Clarke School of Law at the University of the District of Columbia.
Elections
- 1994 Hunt was initially elected in the District 31 Democratic primary and the November 8, 1994, general election, and re-elected in the November 5, 1996, general election.
- 1998 Hunt was challenged in the three-way 1998 Democratic primary, but won, and won the November 3, 1998, general election against Libertarian candidate John Sturgeon.
- 2000 To challenge Senate District 8 incumbent Republican Senator Vic Sprouse, Hunt ran in the 2000 Democratic primary and won, but lost the November 7, 2000, general election to Senator Sprouse, who held the seat from 1997 until 2009.
- 2004 April 30 his third son Jackie Lee Hunt was born. When District 30 Representative Foster ran for West Virginia Senate and left a district seat open, Hunt placed in the fourteen-way 2004 Democratic primary and was elected in the fourteen-way seven-position November 2, 2004, general election which re-elected incumbents Jon Amores (D), Bonnie Brown (D), and Bobbie Hatfield (D), and nominees Corey Palumbo (D), Sharon Spencer (D), Danny Wells (D), and unseated Representative Calvert (R).
- 2006 To challenge West Virginia's 2nd Congressional District incumbent Republican United States Representative Shelley Moore Capito, Hunt ran in the 2006 Democratic primary but lost to Mike Callaghan; Congresswoman Capito was re-elected in the November 7, 2006, general election.
- 2008 When Representative Palumbo ran for West Virginia Senate and Representative Amores retired, leaving two district seats open, Hunt placed fifth in the seventeen-way May 13, 2008, Democratic primary with 10,512 votes (8.5%),{{cite web |url= http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/results.aspx?year=2008&eid=3&county=Statewide |title= Statewide Results Primary Election May 13, 2008 Official Results |publisher= Secretary of State of West Virginia |location= Charleston, West Virginia |access-date= March 31, 2014}} and placed fifth in the fifteen-way seven-position November 4, 2008, general election with 21,635 votes (8.0%) behind Democratic nominee Doug Skaff and incumbent Representatives Wells, Brown (D), and Hatfield (D), and ahead of incumbents Spencer (D) and Guthrie (D), all seven Republican nominees and Mountain Party candidate John Welbourn.{{cite web |url= http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/results.aspx?year=2008&eid=4&county=Statewide |title= Statewide Results General Election November 4, 2008 Official Results |publisher= Secretary of State of West Virginia |location= Charleston, West Virginia |access-date= March 31, 2014}}
- 2010 Hunt placed sixth in the thirteen-way May 11, 2010, Democratic primary with 5,158 votes (10.0%),{{cite web |url= http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/results.aspx?year=2010&eid=5&county=Statewide |title= Statewide Results Primary Election May 11, 2010 Official Results |publisher= Secretary of State of West Virginia |location= Charleston, West Virginia |access-date= March 31, 2014}} and placed sixth in the fourteen-way seven-position November 2, 2010, general election with 17,197 votes (7.8%) behind incumbent Representative Skaff (D), Republican nominee Eric Nelson, incumbents Wells (S), Hatfield (D), and Brown (D), and ahead of and incumbent Guthrie(D), unseated Representative Spencer (D) and the remaining Republican nominees.{{cite web |url= http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/results.aspx?year=2010&eid=6&county=Statewide |title= Statewide Results General Election November 2, 2010 Official Results |publisher= Secretary of State of West Virginia |location= Charleston, West Virginia |access-date= March 31, 2014}}
- 2012 Redistricted to District 36 with fellow District 30 incumbent Representatives Nancy Guthrie and Danny Wells, Hunt placed second in the seven-way May 8, 2012, Democratic primary with 2,834 votes (20.4%),{{cite web |url= http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/results.aspx?year=2012&eid=8&county=Statewide |title= Statewide Results Primary Election May 8, 2012 Official Results |publisher= Secretary of State of West Virginia |location= Charleston, West Virginia |access-date= March 31, 2014}} and placed first in the six-way three-position November 6, 2012, general election with 9,325 votes (19.7%) ahead of Representatives Wells (D) and Guthrie (D) and Republican nominees Robin Holstein, Stevie Thaxton, and Steve Sweeney.{{cite web |url= http://apps.sos.wv.gov/elections/results/results.aspx?year=2012&eid=13&county=Statewide |title= Statewide Results General Election November 6, 2012 Official Results |publisher= Secretary of State of West Virginia |location= Charleston, West Virginia |access-date= March 31, 2014}}
- 2016 In 2016, Hunt ran as a Democrat for the U.S. House of Representatives in West Virginia's 2nd congressional district. He won the Democratic primary but was defeated in the general election by incumbent Republican Alex Mooney.{{cite web |title=Election Results |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Mark_Hunt |website=Ballotpedia |access-date=25 April 2025}}
- 2022 Hunt was elected to the West Virginia State Senate representing the 8th district in 2022 as a Republican. He won the Republican primary on May 10, 2022, against Joshua Higginbotham and Mark Mitchem. In the general election on November 8, 2022, Hunt defeated incumbent Democrat Richard Lindsay with 56.8% of the vote. {{cite web |title=Election Results |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Mark_Hunt |website=Ballotpedia |access-date=25 April 2025}}
- 2024 In 2024m, Mark Hunt ran as a Republican candidate for West Virginia State Auditor. He won the primary on May 14, 2024, defeating Eric Householder, Tricia Jackson, and Caleb Hanna. In the general election held on November 5, 2024, Hunt defeated Democratic nominee Mary Ann Claytor with 70.0% of the vote. {{cite web |title=Election Results |url=https://ballotpedia.org/Mark_Hunt |website=Ballotpedia |access-date=25 April 2025}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.legis.state.wv.us/House/lawmaker.cfm?member=Delegate%20Hunt Official page] at the West Virginia Legislature
- [http://markahunt.net/ Campaign site]
- {{CongLinks | congbio = | votesmart = 7597 | fec = | congress = }}
- [https://ballotpedia.org/Mark_Hunt Mark Hunt] at Ballotpedia
- [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/uniquecandidate.phtml?uc=1902 Mark Hunt] at OpenSecrets
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{{Current West Virginia statewide political officials}}
{{U.S. state auditors}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, Mark}}
Category:21st-century members of the West Virginia Legislature
Category:David A. Clarke School of Law alumni
Category:Democratic Party members of the West Virginia House of Delegates
Category:Democratic Party West Virginia state senators
Category:Lawyers from Charleston, West Virginia
Category:Marshall University alumni
Category:Politicians from Charleston, West Virginia
Category:State auditors of West Virginia