Submitted photo State Democratic Party Chair Del. Mike Pushkin, right, talks with former state Delegate Bill Hartman before the Randolph County Democratic Party's annual dinner held at the Wingate by Wyndham Elkins.

ELKINS – The Randolph County Democratic Party recently hosted its annual Democracy Dinner at the Wingate by Wyndham Elkins to celebrate 250 years of America.

A sold-out audience was joined by a host of state-level representatives at the event, including West Virginia House of Delegates Minority Leader Sean Hornbuckle, who was the keynote speaker.

“We were very excited to have Sean Hornbuckle as our keynote speaker,” said Randolph County Democratic Executive Committee Chair Nanci Bross-Fregonara. “In his remarks, Hornbuckle spoke about the important message of Thomas Paine’s ‘Common Sense’ and how this great experiment with democracy, which began 250 years ago, has not been easy.”

Hornbuckle, D-Cabell County, was chosen as the state’s first Black House minority leader in 2023. Hornbuckle joined other West Virginia Democratic lawmakers in touring the state with the popular Kitchen Table Tour in 2025. The tour was designed to listen to West Virginia’s most important issues, including electric rates, child care, healthcare, clean drinking water and education.

A host of candidates running for office, including Rachel Fetty Anderson (U.S. Senate), Kevin Carpenter (State Senate, District 11), Daniell Dougherty (House of Delegates, District 66), and Mandy Weirich (House of Delegates, District 67), each spoke about the importance of democracy during their speeches.

“We look forward to working hard this fall for our candidates, both on the local and national level, and encourage others to ‘be that someone’ and do the same,” said Bross-Fregonara.

Delegate Mike Pushkin, Chair of the West Virginia Democratic Party, and Pam Tucker Cline, Vice Chair of the WVDP, also attended the event. They were joined by Elkins High School senior Juliann Harlan, who spoke during the evening. Harlan is a three-time American Legion State Oratorical champion and was recently selected to attend Girls Nation in Washington D.C.

“We all recognized at the dinner that the power of doing just one thing can make a difference,” Bross-Fregonara said. “Whether a suffragette fighting for the right to vote at the turn of the century, or a volunteer mentoring a child, or canvasser drumming up support for candidates today… Rather than wishing someone else would do something, choosing to be that someone is powerful.”

For more information about the Randolph County Democratic Party, visit randolphcountydems.com.