The Ohio Valley Digest — Monday, May 4, 2026

Your daily brief — election-eve edition.

The day in one paragraph

Polls open in Ohio at 6:30 a.m. tomorrow, and the headlines split three ways. First, the ballot: Jefferson County, Marietta, and Belmont County all face contested primaries, and the West Virginia primary is now eight days out, with PAC spending in the WV statehouse races now exceeding $2.6 million in just 30 days. Second, the Greenbrier Resort — owned by Sen. Jim Justice's family — is in federal court facing a receivership motion alleging $141 million in defaulted debt. Third, the Iran war keeps the Strait of Hormuz in focus, where the U.S. Navy began escorting commercial ships through the choke point this morning; gas hit $4.87 statewide in Ohio, Spirit Airlines went out of business Saturday, and the Marcellus is selling more gas than it has in years. Closer to home: Hancock County Schools confirmed 143 jobs cut, a tanker truck spilled drilling fluid near Cameron Saturday night, and the Wheeling-Charleston diocese has a new bishop.

What happened this week

Ohio votes tomorrow. Polls run 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Ohio is an open primary — you don't have to be registered with a party; you just ask for the ballot you want at the polls. The races on the eastern Ohio ballot worth watching: Ron Ferguson vs. Frank Hoagland for the 96th House District; David Taylor vs. Bob Carr in the GOP primary for the newly redrawn 2nd Congressional District (the redistricting put Marietta in this district for the first time); the 6th Congressional District race; the Steubenville income-tax renewals; and the full Belmont County primary slate (open commissioner seat, auditor's race, common pleas seats, four levies).

Belmont County's primary ballot is unusually full. Three Republicans are running for Jerry Echemann's open commission seat: former four-term commissioner Chuck Probst (Bridgeport), former Belmont ODOT administrator David Schafer (Bethesda), and Shadyside pizza-shop owner Dominic DeFelice. Three are running for auditor: incumbent Cindi Henry, former Shadyside village council member Nick Ferrelli, and former Belmont commissioner Josh Meyer (Bellaire). Four levy questions: Union Local Schools, Memorial Park (St. Clairsville/Richland), Shadyside village, and a Martins Ferry police levy worth about $300,000 a year.

The Greenbrier is in federal court. A subsidiary of TRT/Omni filed amended motions Friday in U.S. District Court asking Chief Judge Frank Volk to appoint a receiver for the Greenbrier Resort, alleging the family of Sen. Jim Justice has defaulted on more than $141 million in debt while letting the historic property "fall into physical and financial ruin." The Justice family had 14 amended forbearance agreements with Carter Bank before TRT bought the loan in April. The complaint also alleges overdue state and federal taxes, suspended Greenbrier Clinic mammography services, delayed health-insurance and 401(k) match payments, and unpaid vendors.

WV primary spending exceeds $2.6 million in 30 days. Five outside-spending groups added nearly a million dollars of spending in just one week. Sugar Maple PAC alone — tied to Gov. Patrick Morrisey — spent $889,000 in April. The combined PAC spend over the past 30 days now exceeds the entire spending of either Capito's 2020 primary or Morrisey's 2024 gubernatorial primary. The races where this money is landing hardest in this footprint: Stephens vs. DeWitt for the WV House 6 seat (Marshall County), Santorine vs. Ennis for House 4, and Dobkin vs. Heaney for Senate District 2.

A truck spilled drilling fluid near Cameron Saturday night. A commercial tanker carrying 2,500 gallons of oil-based mud — the kind of fluid used in gas-well drilling — crashed near Fork Ridge Road and U.S. 250 around 7:30 p.m. About half the load went onto the ground. The driver is in stable condition; cleanup is under way; the investigation continues. Watch for whether the WVDEP cites the trucking company.

Wheeling-Charleston has a new bishop. Pope Leo XIV accepted Bishop Mark Brennan's resignation Saturday and named the Most Rev. Evelio Menjivar-Ayala — currently the auxiliary bishop in Washington — to replace him. Menjivar-Ayala was born in El Salvador, came to the U.S. in 1990, and was the first Salvadoran-born bishop in the country when he was named to the auxiliary post in 2023. His installation Mass is July 2 in Wheeling.

Hancock County Schools cut 143 jobs. That's about a quarter of the workforce, gone through layoffs, transfers, resignations, and early retirements. The cuts followed the West Virginia Board of Education's January declaration of immediate intervention. Affected staff have until August 1 to know whether their jobs are coming back.

Harrison County's missing-funds case is still open. A Bureau of Criminal Investigation probe into about $17,000 missing from the Harrison County Republican Party has only been partially handed to county prosecutor Lauren Knight. The case has centered on Dion Troiano — who served as both the Board of Elections director and the party's treasurer. Troiano is on paid administrative leave.

What might cost you more this week

Gas hit $4.99 in Steubenville Friday; Ohio's average is now $4.87. Diesel was $5.39. The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, and the U.S. Navy started escorting commercial ships through the strait this morning — a major step in U.S. involvement in the Iran war. WTI crude is near $106; Brent is at $108.17. OPEC+ met Sunday — without the UAE, which exited the cartel May 1 — and agreed to raise output 188,000 barrels per day in June, a number analysts called "symbolic" because it doesn't come close to backfilling the lost Persian Gulf supply.

Spirit Airlines went out of business Saturday. About 17,000 employees are affected. Trump declined to bail out the airline. Pittsburgh International was a Spirit station; OV travelers headed to Florida and Latin America lose a budget option. United, Delta, JetBlue, and Southwest are offering $200 one-way tickets to stranded Spirit customers.

FirstEnergy is filing a new three-year rate plan May 22. Ohio Edison residential customers — that's most of Columbiana and parts of Jefferson — would see a proposed $4.26-a-month distribution increase under the filing. The state Public Utilities Commission will hold hearings.

Names to know this week

On the Ohio ballot tomorrow: Ron Ferguson and Frank Hoagland (96th House); David Taylor and Bob Carr (Ohio 2nd Congressional GOP); Jen Mazzuckelli and Todd Wilson (OH-2 Democratic); Paul Cameron and James Joyce (95th House Democratic); Michael Rulli and Jullie Kelley (6th Congressional GOP) plus a six-Democrat field on the other side; the Belmont County commissioner, auditor, common pleas, and levy slate.

On the West Virginia ballot in eight days: Del. Jeff Stephens vs. Don DeWitt (House 6); Dolph Santorine and Derek Ennis (House 4); Bob Dobkin vs. Toby Heaney (Senate 2); Brooke County Commission incumbent Stacey Wise vs. Kevin Himmelrick; Hancock County library and animal-shelter levies.

Just appointed: Nicole Coil — Washington County prosecutor — to the Common Pleas bench. She takes office May 26 and must run in November to keep the seat.

Memory keepers: The Imperial Glass Collectors Society marked its 50th annual convention this weekend in Bellaire — keeping alive the memory of the company that ran from 1904 to 1984 and was the village's largest job provider.

This week in the Valley

• Wednesdays in Wintersville opens this Wednesday May 6, 4:30-8:30 p.m., with a magic theme — Harry Potter exhibit, bounce houses, cookie baking contest, wand-themed school-supply drive, and an 18-and-under maker's market.
• Friends of the Public Library 25-cent book sale, May 9-10 at the Steubenville Main Library, 407 S. Fourth St.
• Wheeling Symphony Orchestra closes its season May 8 — "Take Me Home" with electric violinist Tracy Silverman.
• National Day of Prayer, Capitol Theatre Wheeling, May 7.
• Free Comic Book Day runs through May 9 at Asylum Comics (Marietta) and Lost Legion (Vienna).
• OhioMeansJobs Belmont County job fair, May 7, Ohio Valley Mall — about 90 employers.

In the longer view

• The Seven Ranges Survey began at East Liverpool 240 years ago. Paul Zuros at Historic Fort Steuben anchors the local America 250 commemoration of the 1785 Point of Beginning — the surveyor's line that produced the Public Land Survey System used to plat property across most of the United States.
• Pennsylvania's Public Utility Commission just adopted a Model Large Load Tariff that would require data centers to pay upfront for new utility infrastructure built to serve them. Ohio doesn't have one yet. If Ohio adopts something similar when FirstEnergy files its rate plan May 22, OV ratepayers will be paying a smaller share of the data-center buildout cost.
• The Wheeling Nailers advanced in the ECHL playoffs Saturday with a 1-0 double-overtime win over Reading. Goalie Taylor Gauthier had 41 saves.

Got a tip, an obituary, or something we should know about? Send an email to tips@ohiovalleydigest.org.

The Ohio Valley Digest covers Belmont, Jefferson, Harrison, Columbiana, Monroe, Noble, Morgan, Guernsey, and Washington (OH) counties; Marshall, Wetzel, Ohio, Brooke, and Hancock (WV).