Carol Miller (politician)
American politician (born 1950)
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Carol Miller (née Devine; born November 4, 1950) is an American politician, educator, and farmer serving as the U.S. representative for West Virginia's 1st congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, she previously represented the 3rd district from 2019 to 2023, prior to redistricting. Her district covers the southern half of West Virginia, including the cities of Beckley, Bluefield, Charleston, and Huntington.
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- 3rd district (2019–2023)
- 1st district (2023–present)
Carol Miller | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from West Virginia | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Evan Jenkins |
| Constituency |
|
| Member of the West Virginia House of Delegates | |
| In office December 1, 2006 – December 1, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Margarette Leach |
| Succeeded by | John Mandt |
| Constituency | 15th district (2006–2012) 16th district (2012–2018) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Carol Devine November 4, 1950 Columbus, Ohio, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Parent |
|
| Education | Columbia College, South Carolina (BA) |
| Website | House website |
Miller represented the 15th district in the West Virginia House of Delegates from 2007 to 2013, and the 16th district from 2013 to 2019.[1][2]
Education
Miller earned a bachelor's degree in history and political science from Columbia College in Columbia, South Carolina.[3]
West Virginia House of Delegates
Challenging District 15 Democratic representatives Margarette Leach, Kevin Craig, and Jim Morgan, Miller placed in the four-way three-selectee 2004 Republican primary, but lost the six-way three-position general election. (All the incumbents were reelected.)[citation needed]
Challenging the incumbents again, Miller placed in the six-way three-selectee 2006 Republican primary and was elected in the six-way three-position general election, unseating Leach. Craig and Morgan were reelected.[citation needed]
Miller placed first in the three-way Republican primary on May 13, 2008, with 2,116 votes (43.8%).[4] She then placed third in the six-way three-position general election, with 8,163 votes (18.2%), behind Craig and Morgan and ahead of non-selectee candidates Democrat Carl Eastham, and Republicans James Carden and Paula Stewart.[5]
Miller placed first in the three-way Republican primary on May 11, 2010, with 1,505 votes (44.4%).[6] She then placed second in the six-way three-position general election, with 6,601 votes (19.7%), behind Craig and ahead of Morgan and non-selectee candidates Democrat Matthew Woelfel, and Republicans Patrick Lucas and Douglas Franklin.[7]
With all three incumbent District 15 representatives redistricted to District 16, Miller placed first in the Republican primary on May 8, 2012, with 1,745 votes (19.6%).[8] She then placed second in the five-way three-position general election, with 8,415 votes (21.8%), behind Craig and ahead of Morgan and non-selectee candidates Democrat Sean Hornbuckle and Republican Mike Davis.[9]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2018
On May 8, 2017, incumbent U.S. Representative Evan Jenkins announced his intention to run against incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Joe Manchin.[10] In August 2017, Miller announced her intention to run to fill Jenkins's seat.[11]
On May 8, 2018, Miller defeated State Delegate Rupie Phillips and State Delegate Marty Gearheart. She received 23.8% of the vote, and won three of the 18 counties in the district.[12][13] Miller went on to face State Senator Richard Ojeda.[14]
Many polling outlets considered this race Lean Republican or a tossup.[15][16] On November 6, Miller defeated Ojeda with 56.4% of the vote, winning all but two counties in the district.[17][18][19] Upon election, she became the first woman to represent West Virginia's 3rd congressional district and the only Republican woman to be elected to an open seat in 2018.[20][21]
2020
Miller was reelected, defeating Russell Siegel in the Republican primary[22] and Hilary Turner in the general election with 71.3% of the vote.[23]
2022
As a result of redistricting after the 2020 United States Census, Miller's district was renumbered as the 1st district. With West Virginia losing a district, the state ended its longstanding scheme of numbering districts from north to south, instead having the 1st district in the south and the 2nd district in the north. Miller retained all the counties in the old 3rd, while gaining the ten southernmost counties from the old 2nd (including Kanawha County, home to Charleston) and one county from the old 1st. She announced on the day the map was finalized that she would run for reelection in the new 1st district.[24] On May 10, 2022, she won the Republican primary with 66% of the vote. She defeated perennial candidate Lacy Watson in the general election with 66.7% of the vote.[25]
2024
In the 2024 election, she won reelection with 66.4% of the vote.[26]
Tenure
In December 2020, Miller was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[27] incumbent Donald Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[28][29][30]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, auto dealerships owned by Miller's husband received loans of over $3 million as part of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP); the loans were later forgiven.[31][32][33][34] Miller voted against the TRUTH Act (H.R. 6782), a bill that would have required public disclosure of companies that received funds through the bailout program.[35][36]
In September 2022, Business Insider reported that Miller had violated the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act of 2012, a federal transparency and conflict-of-interest law, by failing to properly disclose 21 stock trades made by her husband in 2021 worth between $217,021 and $805,000.[37]
On October 5, 2023, Miller signed a letter to the House Agriculture Committee along with 15 House Republicans opposing the inclusion of the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) Act in the 2023 farm bill.[38] The EATS Act, introduced in response to the California farm animal welfare law Proposition 12, would have overturned state and local regulations on agricultural goods sold across state lines. The letter argued that the legislation would infringe on states' rights and disproportionately benefit foreign-owned agribusinesses like the Chinese-owned pork producer WH Group.
Miller opposes free trade and supports an America First policy approach on trade that ends trade deals that send jobs overseas.[39]
April 2025 Trip to El Salvador
In April 2025, Miller traveled to El Salvador[40][41] and received a tour of Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT), a maximum security prison used by the Trump administration to hold U.S. immigrants removed from the United States, including immigrants like Kilmar Abrego Garcia who was illegally transported to the prison.
Committee assignments
For the 119th Congress:[42]
Caucus memberships
- Republican Main Street Partnership[43]
- U.S.-Japan Caucus[44]
- Congressional Energy Export Caucus
- Congressional Coal Caucus
- Congressional Western Caucus[45]
- Congressional Friends of Ecuador Caucus
- Congressional Appalachian Caucus
- Congressional Mental Health Caucus
- Congressional India and Indian American Caucus
- Congressional STARBASE Caucus[46]
- Rare Disease Caucus[47]
- United States–China Working Group[48]
Personal life
Miller owns a bison farm that she personally managed until she was elected to Congress.[50]
While serving in the House of Delegates, Miller taught a manners class to the elementary schools of Huntington. While doing that, she earned the nickname "Miss Manners".[51]
Miller's son, Chris Miller, ran for Governor of West Virginia in the 2024 West Virginia gubernatorial election, running for the term-limited seat of incumbent Jim Justice. He came third in the Republican primary, receiving 20% of the vote.[citation needed]
Electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Carol Miller | 8,936 | 23.8 | |
| Republican | Rupert Phillips | 7,320 | 19.5 | |
| Republican | Marty Gearheart | 6,833 | 18.2 | |
| Republican | Conrad Lucas | 6,812 | 18.1 | |
| Republican | Rick Snuffer | 4,032 | 10.7 | |
| Republican | Ayne Amjad | 2,791 | 7.4 | |
| Republican | Philip Payton | 861 | 2.3 | |
| Total votes | 37,585 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Carol Miller | 98,645 | 56.4 | |
| Democratic | Richard Ojeda | 76,340 | 43.6 | |
| Total votes | 174,985 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Carol Miller (incumbent) | 40,226 | 70.3 | |
| Republican | Russell Siegel | 17,024 | 29.7 | |
| Total votes | 57,250 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Carol Miller (incumbent) | 161,585 | 71.3 | |
| Democratic | Hilary Turner | 64,927 | 28.7 | |
| Total votes | 226,512 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Carol Miller (incumbent) | 151,511 | 66.7 | |
| Democratic | Lacy Watson | 65,428 | 28.8 | |
| Independent | Belinda Fox-Spencer | 10,257 | 4.5 | |
| Total votes | 227,196 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Carol Miller (incumbent) | 228,491 | 66.4 | ||
| Democratic | Chris Reed | 90,038 | 26.1 | ||
| Independent | Wes Holden | 25,616 | 7.4 | ||
| Write-in | 174 | 0.1 | |||
| Total votes | 344,319 | 100.0 | |||
| Republican hold | |||||