Two term West Virginia House of Delegates member Ralph Rodighiero, D-Logan, filed his precandidacy papers at 12 p.m. today to run against 3rd District Congressmen Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., in the 2010 Democratic Primary, making him Rahall’s only Democrat competition.

Rodighiero, 46, is a delivery driver for UPS and a native of Logan County. He was first elected to the House of Delegates in 2006 and was re-elected to a second term in 2008. He serves on the House committees on Agriculture, Education, Health and Human Resources, and Natural Resources.

Rodighiero confirmed his candidacy in a phone interview this afternoon. He says that Rahall isn’t representing the interests of the miners in the state.

“There is just no representation in southern West Virginia as far as our coal mining industry,” said  Rodighiero. “Our whole state thrives on coal mining. We need someone in Washington D.C. to fight for the rights of coal miners and the working people of West Virginia. The EPA, in my opinion, is getting just as much attention from our representatives as the coal industry. You can’t straddle on a situation like that. When you depend on coal, coal is it. When coal goes down, these stores go down. I’m a UPS driver and I can see that this time last year we’re down two or three routes because of the economy. The jobs aren’t there and people are afraid to spend because they don’t know next week if they’re getting their mine shut down.”

The current state congressional leadership are clueless about the struggles of working people, Rodighiero says. He points to his job and his experiences providing for his family to show that he has a better grasp of issues facing voters today.

“I work for the public and I think we need a working person representing the working people that’s got down-to-earth ideas,” explained Rodighiero. “I’ve got mortgages, I have a kid in college, I’ve got premiums I have to pay. I think people in these high-ranking seats have no idea about the average working or person or what it takes to keep an average home going. I think I fit that and can identify with every bit of it.”

Rahall has been in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1977 and is entrenched. However, Rodighiero says that he is already has support he can draw upon. He says the pent-up frustration in southern West Virginia could see Rahall knocked out in 2010.

“Logan County is my home town; my last two races I came in first,” added Rodighiero. “I’m fortunate enough to have friends in Boone County, Lincoln, Logan (counties). I’ve delivered to a lot of those areas as a UPS driver. I think they know that I’m a hard working guy and I think I’ll get their support. I feel a lot of frustration in southern West Virginia. Everytime you turn around they’re squeezing and squeezing us. Most people have had it above their heads and we’ve took about all we’re going to take. What do you say enough is enough? If you can’t change the way the guy thinks and the things he does, you change the guy.”

Republicans Lee Bias and Marty Gearheart are also running against Rahall.

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