Federalists Rally Behind a Nuclear Future — and a Fight for Fair Representation

Federalist Party Convention

The Federalist Party brought noise, slogans, and a fully stocked slate to the convention floor, opening with a commissioner of agriculture candidate who had the room chanting “Greenhouse, great house” before pivoting to the party’s signature themes: farming, nuclear energy, and undoing the environmental damage done to West Virginia. “I’m setting up for the future,” he told the crowd, “ways to make it right.”

The energy carried through the slate. Treasurer candidate Caden Yao — campaigning under the irresistible slogan “Yao money” — leaned on real experience, noting he had raised more than $5,000 as a club treasurer, and pitched grants for nuclear power, support for nature preservation, expanded jobs and unemployment benefits, and a daily public spending summary to keep the government honest.

Secretary of State candidate Leroy Song framed himself as everyone’s secretary of state, promising open, accessible record-keeping “so no one is left in the dark.” He also announced he was joining a lawsuit filed by Attorney General candidate Thomas Farrell against the camp staff over cabin consolidation and county representation — a thread that would surface again and again across both parties. Auditor candidate Deacon “Stan” Stanislawczyk built his pitch around a single word, accountability, vowing to be “a watchdog, not a secret keeper,” and reminded voters his name proves it: the LAW is right in there.

Farrell closed the cabinet candidates with a fiery case for justice “for every party, and even the staff if it becomes necessary,” confirming he had filed the lawsuit himself. Keynote speaker Lincoln Schriever of Randolph Cottage then laid out the full Federalist vision: nuclear power as the state’s future, government-funded retraining for displaced fossil-fuel workers, forcing mining companies to restore stripped land, lowering the supermajority requirement for emergency-services levies, and reining in large-scale corporate AI that harvests personal data.

Governor hopeful Jackson Rapold — “Action Jack” — wrapped things up with a promise to make sure every voice is heard, federalist or nationalist, and to make Boys State more fun along the way. With time to spare on the clock, the party filled its block the only way it knew how: a full-throated sing-along of “Country Roads” and the Boys State hymn, complete with a friendly debate over which verses they actually remembered.