Who's In the Race
The race for West Virginia's 2nd Congressional District seat comes down to Riley Moore, the Republican incumbent who ran unopposed in his primary and collected all 48,782 votes cast, and Democratic challenger Ace Parsi. Parsi won the primary with 39.8 percent of the vote (a margin of 850 votes) in a three-way contest that drew 44,791 total ballots. [](#ngr-3de8fa59-8e9e-47a4-b69d-80dc05666478)
What They Stand For
Parsi, a community organizer based in Monongalia County, centers his platform on economic development, calling for Small Business Administration grants and low-interest loans to help entrepreneurs invest in West Virginia and convert abandoned buildings into community centers and small businesses.
He advocates cutting taxes on Social Security benefits, expanding senior healthcare access, and adjusting the contribution structure so that, in his framing, billionaires and middle-class workers do not pay the same amount into the system.
Parsi also argues that access to affordable healthcare and strong public schools should not depend on income or zip code, and frames his candidacy around restoring faith in representative democracy, drawing on his own experience fleeing Iran after a failed pro-democracy movement.
Moore, who previously served as West Virginia State Treasurer, makes energy dominance a centerpiece of his campaign, opposing efforts to shut down the coal industry or restrict natural gas and oil, and supporting legislation he says will bring market certainty and reduce energy costs.
On immigration, his campaign website states that "the only acceptable level of illegal immigration is zero," and he has voted for legislation he describes as delivering investments to secure the border and combat transnational crime.
Moore also touts his votes for cryptocurrency legislation, including the GENIUS Act, and his co-sponsorship of the Clarity Act, and has been a vocal opponent of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria in financial ratings, drawing on his record as state treasurer.
The Money Behind the Race
Outside spending in this race totals $523,630, all of it supporting Moore, with no opposing expenditures reported. The sole outside spender on record is West Virginians for Life Inc Political Action Committee, which accounts for the full $523,630. Federal Election Commission filings cover expenditures through Sept. 21, with notices through Sept. 24.
Race Outlook: Ratings and Betting Markets
Every major race-rating outlet calls this contest Solid Republican: the Cook Political Report, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and Inside Elections, all as of September 2026. On the prediction market Kalshi, as of Sept. 24, Moore's probability of winning stood at 93.7 percent, with Parsi at 6.3 percent, based on a market volume of 2,655 contracts.
In 2022, Republican Alexander X. Mooney won this same seat with 65.5 percent of the vote. In 2024, Moore won it with 70.8 percent. Donald Trump carried West Virginia in the 2024 presidential race with nearly 70 percent of the vote. Republicans won three of three federal congressional races in West Virginia in 2022 and three of three in 2024.
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