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WHEELING -- Union leader David Cantrell -- after a past run as a Democrat -- is running as an independent in the race for the District 3 House of Delegates in the Nov. 3 general election.
He serves as the president of the Independent Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 141 and also is the current president of the Ohio Valley Trades and Labor Assembly.
"As a labor leader, I've been very involved in politics when it comes to the working class," Cantrell said. "This is just the natural progression of what I have been doing.
"I've always done whatever is needed for the working class -- whether it is participating in my labor union or participating in the labor council."
Cantrell, of Clearview, will face incumbent Delegate Jimmy Willis, R-Brooke, and Democratic nominee Mike Robinson in the three-man race.
When Cantrell saw an opportunity to run for the District 3 seat, he said he knew he must file so that he could help fight the taxation and tax cuts negatively affecting working people.
"It was an opportunity for me to step forward and take that lead for working-class individuals," he continued. "(Taxation and tax cuts) may save a buck, but in the end these affect working-class families."
Cantrell wants to give working people "a voice" in Charleston.
"There's not much communication between our elected officials (and the public)," he said. "We don't really hear back about why they voted for a bill, or why they voted against it."
Cantrell was the Democratic nominee for the District 3 seat in 2024. He explained why he is running this time as an independent.
"I have been in the IBEW for 26 years, and we have a broad range of opinions," he said. "We have people who lean right, and people who lean left. I just don't think it's fair to put us in a group.
"The two-party system -- at the moment -- is not working for us. I feel both parties need to have a long look in the mirror and think about what is going on. We need to get back to helping working-class families, and the working class itself."
Cantrell is married and the father of two grown sons. He and his wife moved from Kentucky to the Clearview area of Ohio County in 1998.