Politics / Joe Manchin W.Va. Democrats Skipping Obama's Nomination Governor, senator, representative won't attend convention By Evann Gastaldo, Newser Staff Posted Jun 19, 2012 8:01 AM CDT Updated Jun 19, 2012 8:08 AM CDT Copied In this Dec. 17, 2011 file photo, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) You may not be surprised to hear that President Obama is not too popular in West Virginia, considering that a felon serving time in prison actually won more than 40% of the vote against him in last month's presidential primary. That unpopularity apparently extends to the uppermost echelons of Democrats in the state: Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, Sen. Joe Manchin, and Rep. Nick Rahall have decided to skip Obama's formal nomination at the Democratic National Convention this summer, USA Today reports. Jay Rockefeller, West Virginia's senior senator, will attend. (More Joe Manchin stories.) Report an error