Mon County Senator Chris Rose continues to push plan to annex parts of VA and MD
By Matthew Young, RealWV
WV State Sen. Chris Rose, R-Monongalia, continued his quest for the annexation of parts of Virginia and Maryland this week, as he says additional Virginians have asked to be included.
Rose’s plan, a proposed resolution he calls “An Appeal to Heaven,” would see a total of 27 counties in Virginia and Maryland secede from their respective home states and join West Virginia. While the odds of Rose’s plan coming to fruition are miniscule, if such a secession and annexation ever were to occur, it would diminish the geography of each Virginia and Maryland by approximately one-third, and raise the population of West Virginia to some 2.5 million residents.
In a recent interview with a news station in Lynchburg, Virginia, Rose stated that, “If that would happen, West Virginia would be more than happy, willing and able to take the counties in.”
However, while it’s certainly possible that West Virginians would be happy to “take in” the seceding counties, it is highly doubtful that they would be either willing or able to do so. Most of the 27 counties which Rose has “invited” are far removed from the financial-centers of their respective states, and contribute little to their state’s economy. Furthermore, as most of said counties are geographically-distant from hospitals and other necessary resources, their annexation would place an untenable financial-strain on the already-rural Mountain State, which in itself consistently ranks among the poorest states in the nation.
Beyond the financial-logistics, making any such annexation tremendously unlikely are the legal hurdles. Both state legislatures, and both state’s governors would need to approve the move, as would the United States Congress. And while it’s possible that West Virginia’s Republican supermajority would favor annexation in spite of the significant problems it would cause, both Virginia and Maryland are controlled by Democrats.
Rose announced his resolution on November 5, in response to Virginia Democrats’ sweeping, statewide election wins the day prior, which saw Democrats win control of both their governor’s mansion, and their state legislature. For his part, West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey also offered an invitation to Virginians, albeit in a more “tongue-in-cheek” manner.
Taking to social media, Morrisey said, “It’s about to get awful blue in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Don’t wait for the high taxes to [sic] heavy regulations to come. Now is your chance to escape to wild and wonderful West Virginia.”
For the 34-year-old Rose, it is unlikely that the announcement of his intention to propose “An Appeal to Heaven” is anything more than lip service directed towards his voter base, similar to last year’s proposed HCR33, which sought to rename Spruce Knob to “Trump Mountain.” Despite having thus far served only one 60-day legislative session, Rose should now possess enough governmental experience to recognize the political-futility of such a proposal.
However, as even a resolution intended as simple lip service requires time away from more pressing matters, and the taxpayer expense of paying legislative staff, it will be interesting to see if the West Virginia Senate chooses to consider “An Appeal to Heaven” when the 2026 regular session begins on January 14.
