Jim Justice facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jim Justice
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Official portrait, 2025
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| United States Senator from West Virginia |
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| Assumed office January 14, 2025 Serving with Shelley Moore Capito
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| Preceded by | Joe Manchin |
| 36th Governor of West Virginia | |
| In office January 16, 2017 – January 13, 2025 |
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| Lieutenant | Mitch Carmichael Craig Blair Randy Smith |
| Preceded by | Earl Ray Tomblin |
| Succeeded by | Patrick Morrisey |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
James Conley Justice II
April 27, 1951 Charleston, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 2015, 2017–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
Democratic (2015–2017) |
| Spouse |
Cathy Comer
(m. 1975) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | University of Tennessee Marshall University (BA, MBA) |
| Occupation |
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| Website | |
| Nickname | Big Jim |
James Conley Justice II (born April 27, 1951), known as Jim Justice, is an American politician and businessman. Since January 2025, he has been a U.S. Senator representing West Virginia. Before that, he served as the 36th governor of West Virginia from 2017 to 2025. Justice is a member of the Republican Party. He inherited a large coal mining business from his father. His family also owns the Greenbrier, a famous luxury resort in West Virginia.
In 2015, Justice decided to run for governor. He ran as a Democrat and won the election in 2016. However, less than seven months after becoming governor, he switched back to the Republican Party. He announced this change at a rally with President Donald Trump. Justice was reelected as governor in 2020. In 2024, he was elected to the U.S. Senate, becoming the first Republican to win that specific Senate seat from West Virginia since 1956.
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Early Life and Education
James Conley Justice II was born in Charleston, West Virginia. He grew up in Raleigh County, West Virginia. In 1969, he graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Beckley.
He first attended the University of Tennessee on a athletic scholarship for golf. Later, he transferred to Marshall University. At Marshall, he was captain of the golf team for two years. He earned both his bachelor's degree and his Master of Business Administration from Marshall.
Business Career
After college, Jim Justice joined his family's agriculture business. In 1977, he started Bluestone Farms. This farm now covers about 50,000 acres and is a top grain producer on the East Coast of the United States. He also created Stoney Brook Plantation, a large hunting and fishing area. Justice has won national awards for corn growing seven times.
After his father passed away in 1993, Justice took over Bluestone Industries and Bluestone Coal Corporation. In 2009, he sold some of his coal business to a Russian company for $568 million. In 2015, he bought the business back for $5 million after coal prices dropped. Since buying it back, he reopened several mines and hired many miners.
Justice's businesses have faced some financial challenges. In 2020, some of his mining companies agreed to pay $5 million in overdue safety fines. In 2023, a court ordered a helicopter owned by one of his companies to be sold to pay a debt.
Forbes magazine estimated Justice's net worth at $513.3 million in October 2021. By January 2025, his net worth had decreased due to over $1 billion in debt. Justice owns or leads over 50 companies. This includes the Greenbrier resort, which he bought in 2009 for $20.5 million. This purchase helped prevent the resort from going out of business.
Before becoming governor, Justice stepped down from his executive roles in his companies. He put his daughter Jill in charge of the Greenbrier. His son Jay took over his mining and agriculture businesses. He also said he would put all his money and properties into a special arrangement called a blind trust. This helps avoid conflicts of interest for politicians. During the COVID-19 pandemic, his family's businesses received aid through a government program.
Governor of West Virginia
Becoming Governor
In 2015, Jim Justice announced he would run for governor of West Virginia. He ran as a Democrat, even though he had been a Republican before. This was his first time running for a political office. The United Mine Workers union supported him. In May 2016, he won the Democratic nomination. He then defeated the Republican candidate, Bill Cole, in the general election in November.
Reelection in 2020
In January 2019, Justice announced he would run for reelection as governor. This time, he ran as a Republican. He had changed his party after a rally with President Donald Trump in 2017. He won the Republican primary election.
During his reelection campaign, Justice talked about his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also highlighted the state's budget surplus and his efforts to address the state's challenges. On November 3, 2020, he won the election with over 63% of the votes. This made him the first Republican governor of West Virginia to win a second term since 1972.
Time as Governor
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Justice became governor on January 16, 2017. He is known for his unique way of speaking. To improve West Virginia's budget, he suggested increasing state income. He proposed raising the sales tax and bringing back a business tax. He also opposed cutting money for health and education. In April 2017, he vetoed a budget bill from the state legislature. He said the bill was not good for the state.
On August 3, 2017, Justice announced he had rejoined the Republican Party. He made this announcement at a rally with President Donald Trump in Huntington. He said he could not support Trump as a Democrat. This news surprised his own staff. He became the first Republican governor of West Virginia since 2001.
In 2020, Justice signed a law called the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act. This law made it a serious crime to protest at oil and gas facilities. The natural gas industry supported this law.
U.S. Senate
Senate Elections
2024 Election
In April 2023, Justice announced he would run for the 2024 United States Senate election in West Virginia. He won the Republican nomination, defeating U.S. Representative Alex Mooney. The Democratic Senator, Joe Manchin, did not run for reelection. Justice then defeated Glenn Elliott, the former Democratic mayor of Wheeling, West Virginia, in the general election on November 5.
Time in the Senate
Justice began his Senate term on January 14, 2025. He chose to finish his term as governor, which ended on January 13, 2025, before joining the Senate. He was sworn in by Senate President pro tempore Chuck Grassley.
Justice missed his first vote in the Senate. When President Donald Trump announced new taxes on goods from Canada, Mexico, and China in January 2025, Justice supported the idea. He said people worry too much about such changes.
Senate Committees
For the 119th Congress, Jim Justice is part of several important committees:
- Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
- Subcommittee on Conservation, Climate, Forestry, and Natural Resources
- Subcommittee on Food and Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Organics, and Research
- Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Local Food Systems, and Food Safety and Security
- Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- Subcommittee on Energy
- Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining
- Subcommittee on Water and Power
- Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
- Special Committee on Aging
Political Views
Justice started his political career as a conservative Democrat. He was seen as a moderate Democrat. After he switched to the Republican Party, he supported President Donald Trump. Since then, some have described him as a moderate or liberal Republican.
Economy and Jobs
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Justice has always supported the coal industry. He does not support raising taxes generally. However, he has supported increasing teachers' salaries. He believes that more state income would pay for these increases. In 2017, he said he was against budget cuts.
In February 2021, Justice encouraged Senator Joe Manchin to vote for a large government spending plan. He said that people were really struggling and needed help. Regarding raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, Justice said it's hard to have one rule for the whole country. He noted that it's very difficult to live on a low hourly wage. However, he also worried that a very high minimum wage could lead to job losses.
Healthcare
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Justice supports West Virginia's Medicaid expansion. This program helps more people get health insurance. He was against a Republican bill in 2017 that aimed to change the Affordable Care Act. He said that bill would greatly harm West Virginia.
Environmental Policy
Justice has expressed mixed views on global warming. In 2016, he said there is information that causes concern, but more research is needed. He didn't fully say he believed in global warming, but he also didn't say he wasn't concerned.
At the start of his second term as governor, Justice said he believed in alternative energy. He welcomed a company to build a wind farm in West Virginia. This project would increase the state's wind power by 15%. However, he also said that the nation still needs coal and gas for now. He believes there will be a time to move away from fossil fuels, but that time is not yet.
Vaccination
West Virginia was one of the first states to distribute COVID-19 vaccines quickly. Justice encouraged people in West Virginia to get vaccinated. He used the slogan "Do It for Babydog", referring to his pet bulldog.
Justice sometimes showed frustration with the state's Republican legislature. In 2024, he vetoed a bill that would have limited vaccine requirements for some students. He said he had to listen to medical experts, who mostly opposed the bill.
Personal Life
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Justice met his wife, Cathy Justice, in high school. They have two children. The Justices are members of the First Baptist Church in Beckley. Jim Justice is 6 feet 7 inches tall. He is a lifelong fan of the New Orleans Saints football team. He spent $30 million to build a training camp for the team at the Greenbrier in 2014. He also hosted a professional golf tournament there until 2019.
Justice lives in Lewisburg, West Virginia. There was a lawsuit about whether he lived in the West Virginia Governor's Mansion in Charleston, as required by the state constitution. In March, Justice settled the lawsuit. He agreed to live in Charleston and paid the legal fees.
Justice owns a female English bulldog named Babydog. She often appears with him at public events, including the 2024 Republican National Convention.
Youth Sports
Since 1992, Justice has been the president of Beckley Little League. Justice has also been the girls' basketball coach at Greenbrier East High School since 2003. His team won the state championship in 2012. He also coached the boys' basketball team from 2011 to 2017. He was the only coach at the highest high school level in West Virginia to coach both boys' and girls' teams. He continued coaching the girls' team throughout his two terms as governor and still coaches them as a U.S. Senator.
Images for kids
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Then-candidate Justice (seated fifth from the left) in Fairmont, West Virginia, in September 2016.
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Justice at his inauguration in January 2017.
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Jim and Cathy Justice with Vice President Mike Pence in March 2017
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Justice posing for a photo with road workers in March 2017.
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Justice speaks with First Lady Melania Trump at an opioids roundtable in Huntington.
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Justice with Babydog, his pet bulldog that often accompanies him
See also
In Spanish: Jim Justice para niños
