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CHARLESTON -- House Majority Leader Eric Householder is the latest Republican to jump into a West Virginia Board of Public Works race, announcing Friday his campaign for state auditor.
Householder, R-Berkeley, made his announcement Friday at noon at the Martinsburg Holiday Inn Ballroom. He also planned stops over the weekend in Morgantown and Huntington
"I stand before you today with a deep commitment to our conservative principles," Householder said in prepared remarks. "I will put these principles to work in serving our great state as your next auditor. It is a role of utmost importance, one that demands transparency, accountability and responsible management of our state's finances."
Householder was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2010. He spent two terms as chairman of the powerful House Finance Committee under House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, before being named House majority leader at the end of December.
Citing his background as a businessman and his bachelor's in economics from Shepherd University and master's in business administration from Frostburg State University, Householder said his vision for the State Auditor's Office includes continuing the government transparency efforts began by two-term Auditor J.B. McCuskey monitoring the spending of tax dollars investigating fraud and collaborating with other branches of state government.
"My vision as state auditor is to ensure that our state's finances are managed with the utmost integrity, efficiency and transparency," Householder said. "With your support, we can build a brighter future for our state, where every citizen can trust that their hard-earned tax dollars are being put to good use."
McCuskey, also a former member of the House of Delegates, announced he will run for the Republican nomination for attorney general in 2024, after dropping out in July in the multi-candidate Republican race for governor.
Householder faces two announced Republican state auditor candidates.
Delegate Caleb Hanna, R-Nicholas, who announced on the next-to-last day of the 2023 legislative session on March 10. Hanna is the director of public relations for Summersville Regional Medical Center and Braxton County Memorial Hospital, both part of the West Virginia University Health System, WVU Medicine.
Hanna was elected to the House of Delegates in 2018 representing a district consisting of parts of Nicholas, Webster and Greenbrier counties. At the time of taking office in 2019, Hanna was one of the youngest African Americans to be elected to a state legislature. He is now in his third two-year term in the House.
In a statement Friday morning, Hanna accused Householder of being unable to make up his mind about his political future and using a run for state auditor as a privileged retirement plan.
He said he was prepared to debate the issues with Householder.
"Make no mistake Eric Householder's political career has been what I refer to as the 'revolving door of Charleston' spinning in circles and constantly changing his ambitions," Hanna said. "Six months ago, he aspired to be speaker of the House, just a month ago it was state treasurer and now he is running for state auditor. It's about time he picked a lane and stuck with it.
"Let's be clear, I'm tired of career politicians in Charleston just like in D.C. using the Capitol as the state's most privileged retirement plan," Hanna said. "We need leaders who are dedicated to serving the people, not just prolonging their own political careers and padding their pensions."
Householder also will face Jefferson County Commissioner Tricia Jackson, who announced for state auditor last month.
Filing pre-candidacy does not bind the candidate to running for the announced office. The official candidate filing period for the 2024 primaries begins in January, with the primary election taking place on May 14. Candidates can file as pre-candidates, allowing them to fundraise.