Morgantown businessman John R. Raese is a Republican candidate for the United States Senate.
A native son and life long resident of West Virginia, John has a personal and family track record of creating good jobs in the private sector. Raese serves as president and CEO of Greer Industries, which include Greer Limestone, Greer Steel and Preston County Coal and Coke. He is also Chairman of the Board of West Virginia Radio Corporation, which owns 25 radio stations across the state and is founder of the respected METRONEWS Radio Network, which has 56 affiliates reaching every part of the state. John is also vice-president of the Morgantown Dominion-Post, a daily newspaper with a circulation of approximately 30,000. His newest launch was Pikewood Creative, a high-end video post-production house and creative agency located in the Suncrest district of Morgantown.
Growing up in University City, the son of the late Jane Greer Raese and former WVU basketball coach Richard A. “Dyke” Raese, John attended public schools and earned a B. S. degree from West Virginia University in 1973 where he played freshman basketball and varsity baseball. His love for the state attracted him to stay after graduation to build upon and grow the family business which has deep roots in West Virginia and beyond. His namesake grandfather started hauling goods with a team of horses in picturesque Davis, West Virginia, before he was able to open a successful general merchandise store. His maternal great-grandfather was one of the most prominent businessmen and community leaders of Dover/New Philadephia, Ohio. His businesswoman grandmother and engineer grandfather, Agnes and Herbert Greer, moved to Morgantown almost a century ago and established the firm foundation that have provided thousands of good jobs for West Virginian’s for more than half the state’s history.
In 1984, dissatisfied with West Virginia’s economic climate, John embarked on a political career by running for United States Senate against Jay Rockefeller. Even though he was outspent nearly 13 to 1, John narrowly lost by just 3 percentage points. From there John went on to serve as chairman of the West Virginia Republican Party in 1986, stepping down to run for governor in 1988. In his last senatorial campaign, John challenged the nation’s longest serving Senator, Robert Byrd in 2006.
Despite a long list of business accomplishments throughout a lifetime, John is most proud of his family – wife Liz and two wonderful daughters Jane and Agnes. Liz is the founder of the Conservative Women of West Virginia, a growing group of activists charting a conservative path for the Mountain State.
An avid sportsman and hunter, John also adopted his father’s love of the game of golf. He cut out a five hundred acre track of Greer land nine years ago where he designed and developed Pikewood National Golf Club. In 2009 Pikewood earned the distinguished honor of “Best New Private Course” in the nation by Golf Digest Magazine.
John’s background has given him strongly held West Virginia values based on faith, hard work and family. He advocates less government intrusion into our lives and more personal freedom. He remains committed to providing a level playing field and promotes fair competition as essential ingredients to a vibrant, prosperous and growing America.
John Raese is a businessman, a family man and – first and foremost – a West Virginian.