7 stories to know: A progressive for Manchin's seat, robot dogs, and Cicadas invading

“7 stories to know” is a new Monday series showcasing stories that may have been ignored in the crush of news over the past few weeks, and stories that have continued to evolve over the weekend. Expect to read coverage about health, science, and climate that frequently take second chair to what’s happening at the top of the page, plus information from local sources that the national media may have overlooked.

1. The progressive, clean-energy candidate running to replace Joe Manchin

There aren’t many states with recent voting records as blood red as West Virginia. That would seem to make a Democratic senator a much-appreciated anomaly. 

But while Joe Manchin has helped Democrats maintain control of the Senate, he has often served as a stumbling block for even moderate legislation, and either forced concessions to protect his personal interests or blocked passage of critical legislation.

He’s been occasionally reasonable, often maddening, and a destructive force in fighting climate change and preserving voting rights. As he approaches the end of a 24-year Senate career, it’s possible to say that Manchin loves coal—or at least the millions he has made from it—and he loves to hear himself talk on TV. And that seems to be about it. The closest thing he has to signature legislation is all the good bills that have died at his anti-abortion, anti-environment, anti-D.C. and Puerto Rico statehood door.

With Manchin set to retire, it may seem like a foregone conclusion that his seat will flip to whichever West Virginia Republican can bring the most MAGA to the election, but there is an alternative: a progressive, clean-energy Democrat who, as The New Yorker reports, might stand a much better chance of taking Machin’s seat than anyone outside of the state believes.

Zach Shrewsbury is a 32-year-old Marine veteran who announced his candidacy at the historic site of Harper’s Ferry. 

“Why am I honoring John Brown?” Shrewsbury asked the few people who had gathered to hear him that day. “We need a leader who will not waver in the face of these powers that keep the boot on our neck.”

With his thick beard and numerous tattoos, Shrewsbury doesn’t look like a typical politician. Because he’s not.

The expected Republican candidate for Senate, Jim Justice, is a coal mine operator, two-term governor, and one of the richest men in the state. Shrewsbury is a community organizer with a battered old car and little experience in large-scale politics. 

But by the time the general election comes around, things might be a bit more even than anyone would expect. That’s because Justice’s personal fortune is collapsing. He owes $300 million in defaulted loans to a West Virginia bank, the federal government is suing him for millions in unpaid fines for violations at his remaining mines, and he recently had to hand over a helicopter to a Russian energy firm to satisfy an unpaid debt.

Justice is also the proud new owner of a harsh ban on abortion that gives Shrewsbury and other Democrats a platform for pounding the former billionaire. 

The Democratic primary in West Virginia is this Tuesday. Shrewsbury will face off against Machin’s hand-picked successor, Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliot.