On February 28, a big crowd of people honored Senator Jon Hunter. From Morgantown, Sen. Hunter is a dedicated Clean Elections supporter who unfortunately has decided not to run again this year.

At an evening reception at the Charleston Woman’s Club, OVEC gave Sen. Hunter our Bill Moyers "Defender of Democracy" award, in recognition of his tireless work for accountable government and citizen participation. He has been a great friend to many West Virginians working on progressive issues throughout his legislative career.

The event was also a fundraiser in support of our new Clean Elections Challenge Grant. We have been given the opportunity to receive a one-to-one match – if we can raise $15,000 by April 1, the Piper Fund will give us another $15,000.

These challenge grants are the main source of funding for our clean elections work, so meeting the goal is extremely important.

Your help would be greatly appreciated! If you couldn’t attend the reception for Sen. Hunter, contributions may still be sent to OVEC (P.O. Box 6753, Huntington, WV, 25773) or WV Citizen Action (1500 Dixie St., Charleston, WV, 25311). Please mark your check "Clean Elections challenge."

Thank you Sen. Hunter and thanks to everyone helping to establish Clean Elections here.