He’s made floor speeches full of fight for the people who have sent him to Charleston during the last decade, but he’s also worked in bipartisan fashion when opportunity has knocked on the state House of Delegate’s door.
W.Va. Del. Shawn Fluharty (D-5), currently running for a sixth term in the House representing Ohio County’s Fifth District, has been criticized by those who oppose him, but he’s explained during his campaign that he’s enjoyed a great working relationship with Republican Speaker Roger Hanshaw. Their recent collaboration, he reminded listeners on River Talk 100.1 FM last week, has resulted in new partnerships at West Virginia University.
Fluharty, the Minority Whip in the House, and Speaker Hanshaw, a GOP member from Clay County, both were initially elected in 2014.
“Roger and I have had a great relationship since we were both sent to Charleston 10 years ago, and we’ve been on the House Judiciary Committee together because we’re both attorneys,” Fluharty explained. “We have mutual respect for each other because I know the role he fills, and he knows the role I fill each day.
“We’re able to get things done, and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing since Ohio County sent me to the Legislature. Every day, I work across the aisle to get things done for the people in the (Fifth) district and in the state,” he said. “I know a lot of people hear the floor speeches, and that’s because of the people I’m sticking up for when I see something wrong. And sure, I’ve been criticized by people who don’t know about the job. I have results, and I have a record of fighting for the Northern Panhandle.”
Instead of politics, Fluharty and the Speaker bonded over heritage.
“Last year, Roger and I co-chaired the Irish Caucus, and we’ve made some real connections that could bring new business to the state. That’s because I work so well with the Speaker,” Fluharty said. “Now, fast forward to today, the relationship we now have with some officials in Ireland has blossomed into actual legislation to set up the West Virginia-Ireland Trade Commission.
“We’re building business and academic relationships between West Virginia and Ireland that will involve our higher education universities in West Virginia and universities in Ireland,” he explained. “And the only reason it’s happened is because of the relationship I have with Roger Hanshaw, and we even paid for our own trips to Ireland to represent our state in a bipartisan manner.”
Fluharty’s record also includes the iGaming industry, one that now includes sports betting but could include much more in the near future.
“Members of both parties have worked together on major pieces of legislation connected to iGaming, and those millions of dollars have become critical to our state budget,” Fluharty said. “That’s because I’ve always wanted to find new revenue streams instead of raising taxes.
“That’s been my goal since my first day in the House, and now those millions have allowed taxes in the state to be lowered, and I know everyone loves that.”
Purple Is a Positive Color
When Fluharty was first elected to the House of Delegates, he was a practicing trial lawyer in the Wheeling area before he accepted a position a few years ago as in-house counsel for the National Council of Legislators for Gaming States.
The non-partisan organization is dedicated to promoting solid gaming policy in the United States, the incumbent explained, and that means Fluharty now works with lawmakers in as many as 40 states on topics like sports and iGaming, gaming policies, and responsible gaming.
“My position with the Council allows our state to be in the middle of the nationwide conversation when it comes to gaming legislation, and the good news is that West Virginia is a leader in the United States and I’m one of the reasons for that fact,” Fluharty reported. “Because I’m in the position I am with the Council, I’m able to speak with people like Heather Richardson from WVU’s business school to connect with the right people to investigate how teaching gaming technology in academic institutions might work.
“The folks from WVU fell in love with the potential of the programs, but legislators needed to work together so we could pass legislation that requires the operators like DraftKings and Fan Duel to provide the information and data that’s available,” he said. “I knew for a fact that it wasn’t in the current law, so I went directly to Speaker Hanshaw, told him about the opportunity and told him I had everything lined up at WVU for the new program in the business and economics school, and we ended up sponsoring the bill together.”
A Democrat and a Republican? Agreeing on something – anything – let alone on the development of a new law?
“Exactly. When have you ever heard about a Speaker of the House and the Minority Whip ever co-sponsoring legislation? Well, you do when they have the common goal of getting things done for a better West Virginia,” Fluharty said. “We got that bill across the line because we put the politics aside because, at the end of the day, that’s what we should be doing every day.
“The new law helped create a brand-new research program at West Virginia University where students are going to do the research to develop how we can promote more responsible gaming,” he said. “It’s about the research that helps with identifying issues with problem gambling, and it’s also about innovation for the gaming industries, too, because the only other university that a similar problem in UNLV in Las Vegas. It’ll grow and be good for the state, and that’s because of the bipartisan work I’m involved with in Charleston.”
Working across the aisle immediately became the norm for Fluharty for two reasons:
- His first year in the House (2014) was the first year the Republican Party won majorities in both the Senate and the House for the first time in 84 years.
- His colleague in Ohio County was Republican Erikka Storch before she resigned in May 2023 to accept a position with AEP’s Appalachia Power.
“It wasn’t just a no-brainer, it was an honor,” Fluharty said. “The relationship I had with Erikka when she was still a House member was the best in Charleston between a Democrat and a Republican because we always worked together for Ohio County, and that’ll always be the case no matter who wins in the Fourth District on November 5th,” Fluharty said. “She and I worked on a lot of legislation together, and we’ve fought for our district on several occasions.
“Look at the work we did together to protect our greyhound industry. We did that by making a lot of noise so the other lawmakers would get the education they needed to make the right decision.”
‘Noise from the North’
He’s not certain who first labeled him the “Noise from the North,” but Fluharty realizes it was intended to be a negative moniker that could be used by his opposition.
The five-term delegate, however, says he’s done his best to wear the “Noise from the North” nickname as a badge of honor.
“Anyone from this area knows by now that the people in Charleston oppose us here in the Northern Panhandle all of the time. Far too often, it’s us versus them, and I do my best to bring us together in that fight,” Fluharty said. “And yes, I’ll be loud if I have to be, and I’ll fight for the taxpayers in the Northern Panhandle.
“And I know people respect that. They understand I have to rattle the cages sometimes,” he said. “So, yes, we need the ‘Noise from the North’ and it’s ridiculous when someone tries to see that as a negative thing because I know what it takes to best represent the people of the Fifth District. I’m damn proud to speak up for them.”
Fluharty has been attacked. In a recently mailed political flyer created by his opponent and the state Republican Party, his floor speeches have been referred to as “grandstanding” and his policy work as “radical.”
“The majority of the money that is being spent against me is coming out of Charleston from people who oppose the Northern Panhandle when it comes to the distribution of state funds. They want it all in Charleston, plain and simple,” Fluharty insisted. “They want me out of office so they can take it for all for Charleston.
“Let that sink in for a moment,” he added. “All those people want is a puppet that will vote the way they want so that’s why they running the same smear campaign against that they did in previous years. That’s lazy Charleston elites for you, that’s for sure, and I’ll push back and be that noise every time.”
