West Virginia: Coal, natural gas provide energy for GOP

An election judge checks voters' ID cards.

West Virginia's come out of the Great Recession looking a little better than the country at large -- unemployment's 7.6 percent, and lower in the major metro areas like Charleston, Ashland and Morgantown. What gives?

Coal -- an old fossil fuel that a lot of energy plants and manufacturers will need more of as the economy recovers. And natural gas, which is being pumped in record amounts across Appalachia and the Mountain West. A lot of folks in coal country consider Romney their best friend -- at least when the alternative is President Obama.

About the author

Mitchell Hartman is the senior reporter for Marketplace’s Entrepreneurship Desk and also covers employment.

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