MORGANTOWN – Delegate Barbara Evans Fleischauer, D-Monongalia, will run for the state Senate in 2022, she announced Thursday.
She will run to represent the 13th District, newly redrawn during the October redistricting special session. Incumbent Sen. Bob Beach, also D-Monongalia, announced his intention not to seek reelection during the session.
Fleischauer was first elected to the House of Delegates in 1994. She was out of office for a single term following the 2004 election, then returned following the 2006 election.
“One of my proudest accomplishments,” Fleischauer said in her announcement, “was passage of a bill that set a cap on co-pays for insulin.” Fleischauer helped organize a bus trip to Canada – which The Dominion Post joined and reported on – where West Virginians with diabetes were able to purchase insulin at much lower prices. “We still have a long way to go to make drugs more affordable for West Virginians.”
For 18 years, Fleischauer served as chair of the House Constitutional Revision Committee. She also served as co-chair of the Joint Committee on Veterans Affairs and the Joint Juvenile Task Force.
During the 2021 session, Fleischauer led the adoption of a House resolution supporting Mylan workers facing unemployment as plant closure approached, and spearheaded a successful campaign to get CISA, the Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency, to designate the Mylan Pharmaceuticals plant as critical infrastructure.
Fleischauer said the designation could enable a future operator of the plant to secure federal funding for essential medicines to be manufactured in the United States.
A graduate of the WVU College of Law, Fleischauer served five years as general counsel of District 31 of the United Mine Workers, in Fairmont. She also represented employees and families for many years in her private law practice.
“I’ve served for many years with Sen. Beach,” Fleischauer said, “and I commend his leadership on local issues, like helping establish the Monongalia County Ball Park, which hosts both WVU and Minor League baseball teams. I am also grateful for the increased attention he gave to improving the terrible roads in our region when he was chair of the Transportation Committee.”
Fleischauer resided in the 13th Senate District prior to the 2011 redistricting, when the new lines moved her into the 14th. With the October redistricting, the lines put her back inside the 13th. The district includes portions of Monongalia and Marion counties, including Morgantown, Fairmont, Star City, Pleasant Valley, Granville, Monongah, Westover and White Hall.
Fleischauer is married to Bob Bastress, a professor at the WVU College of Law. They live on the Evans family farm on Bakers Ridge Road. They have two adult children, Sarah and Rob, and two grandchildren, Arlo and Della.
“It has been an honor to represent the citizens of Monongalia County,” Fleischauer said, “and I welcome winning the opportunity to serve with my dear friend, Sen. Mike Caputo, who also serves in the 13th District from Marion County. He is such a great champion for the working families of West Virginia.”
Official candidate filing runs Jan. 10-29, 2022. Fleischauer is the first candidate to declare for the 13th District.
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