Richard Ojeda

Richard Neece Ojeda II (born October 25, 1970) is an American politician and retired United States Army major who served in the West Virginia Senate representing the 7th district from 2016 until 2019.

Ojeda graduated from Logan High School in 1988.

He earned a bachelor's degree in General Education from West Virginia State University and a master's degree in Business and Organizational Security from Webster University.

Ojeda said "Where I come from, when you graduate high school, there’s only three choices—dig coal, sell dope, or join the Army. And I chose the military".

He served 25 years in the United States Army, starting as an enlisted soldier before going through officer training and rising to the rank of major.

He earned two Bronze Stars.

During his service, he spent time in South Korea, Honduras, Jordan, Haiti, Afghanistan, and Iraq, where he was attached to the 20th Engineer Brigade.

After retiring from the military, Ojeda worked as a Junior ROTC instructor at Chapmanville Regional High School from 2013 to 2017, resigning due to time constraints related to his service as state senator, in addition with his run for Congress.

He helped start a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps at a local high school.

He established a social services nonprofit, the Logan Empowerment Action and Development, which engaged in community cleanup, Christmas toy drives, providing meals for the needy, and raising money for shoes for kids.

During this time, Ojeda also started penning letters to the editor of the Logan Banner.

As a result, Ojeda was invited by Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia to the 2013 State of the Union address as a guest.

Ojeda decided to enter politics while listening to Manchin discuss disparities in allocation of "manufacturing hubs" to different regions of West Virginia.

Ojeda entered politics in 2014, running for Congress in West Virginia's 3rd District.

He garnered 34% of the vote in the Democratic primary, losing to incumbent Nick Rahall, whom Ojeda challenged on the grounds that the incumbent was not doing enough to advance the interests of the district.

Ojeda was elected to the West Virginia Senate in 2016.

Ojeda was assaulted at a primary campaign event on May 8, 2016, in Logan County, West Virginia.

The assailant, Jonathan S. Porter, who had ties to Ojeda's opponent, received 1–5 years in prison, and a $500 fine as a part of a plea deal.

Ojeda went on to win the Democratic primary for the 7th District of the West Virginia Senate, defeating incumbent Art Kirkendoll.

In the general election, held on November 8, 2016, he defeated Republican Jordan Bridges by almost 18 points.

Ojeda has stated "I don't think I've ever voted for a Democrat for president" and supported Donald Trump in 2016.

In the West Virginia Senate, Ojeda sponsored the West Virginia Medical Cannabis Act, legislation to legalize medical marijuana, which was signed into law by Governor Jim Justice on April 19, 2017.

In the Senate, he called for increases in teacher wages, arguing that low pay would lead to strikes and teachers leaving the state.

He received national attention when he became a vocal supporter of the 2018 teachers' strike and advocated for the legalization of cannabis in West Virginia.

In November 2018, Ojeda announced his candidacy for president in the 2020 election, but he dropped out in January 2019 when his campaign failed to gain traction.

In January 2018, he criticized West Virginia Governor Jim Justice's proposed 1–2% increase in teacher wages, saying it was insufficient.

A member of the Democratic Party, he ran a brief campaign for President of the United States in the 2020 election.

Raised in Logan, West Virginia, Ojeda graduated from West Virginia State University and Webster University.

He initially joined the United States Army as an enlisted soldier and went through officer training after finishing college.

During his 25 years in the military, Ojeda earned two Bronze Star Medals and rose to the rank of major.

After retiring, he initially worked as a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps teacher before running for office.

In January 2020, Ojeda announced he would instead challenge incumbent U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito in the 2020 election, but he failed to secure the Democratic nomination in the primary.

Ojeda was born in Rochester, Minnesota, the son of Florena (Pansera) and Richard N. Ojeda.

He was born into a Democratic family and he registered as a Democrat.

He remarked that "back when I was in high school, being a Republican was like cursing".

Ojeda's paternal grandfather, Senon H. Ojeda, was an undocumented immigrant from the Mexican state of Jalisco who came to West Virginia during the coal boom to try and make a living, and later gained citizenship.

One of Ojeda's grandparents died in a mining accident after fighting in World War II.

Ojeda's father was born in the United States, but moved to Mexico and lived there until the age of eight.

Ojeda's father worked as a nurse anaesthetist.

Ojeda also has Italian ancestry.