His stance on fossil fuels put him at odds with his party and he was frequently blamed for single-handedly quashing some of the Biden administration's most ambitious climate policy goals. Even as West Virginia overwhelmingly voted for former President Donald Trump in the 2016 and 2020 elections, Manchin easily won reelection in 2018. With Manchin gone, his successor will almost certainly be a Republican — most likely West Virginia Gov. Thanks to his GOP credentials and embrace of Trump, he's even less likely to be a climate ally than Manchin. Democrats, whose Senate majority is already slim, could lose that Senate seat for the foreseeable future — making any climate bills that much harder to pass.

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Persons: Sen, Joe Manchin, Manchin, Democratic Sen, Joe Biden's, he's, Katie Myers, Grist, Paul Bledsoe, Chuck Schumer, Gerry Petrella, Schumer, Donald Trump, Jim Justice, — Organizations: Republican, Service, Democratic, GOP, Energy, Natural Resources Committee, Biden, American University's Center, Environmental, E, Democrat, Virginia Gov, Trump Locations: West Virginia, United States, Virginia