CHARLESTON, W.Va.–Natalie Tennant officially taking oath of office to serve as the newest member of the Kanawha County Commission.
An investiture ceremony was held for Commissioner-elect Natalie Tennant at the historic Kanawha County Courthouse Thursday.
It marked a particularly pivotal moment in Kanawha County history as Tennant becomes the first woman to serve on the commission in its 236-year story.
She told MetroNews that after a long election year full of campaigning, it all comes down to this.
“Now this really puts everything into motion,” said Tennant. “After I’m sworn in come January 1st, it will be real.”
Former Secretary of State for four years, Tennant won as the democratic nominee for county commission in the most recent General Election in November.
She will begin her full six-year term on the commission alongside President Lance Wheeler and Commissioner Ben Salango starting January 1.
Tennant said after over a 200-year history, she can’t believe she comes to the seat as the first woman.
“I can’t believe with all of the strong women we’ve had in Kanawha County, I think back on some of our senators, some of our businesswomen, and I can’t believe that there hasn’t been a woman before, and I think that is what is going to be so special,” she said.
Tennant will replace interim Commissioner Marc Slotnick who will return to his original seat as the county lawyer.
Both Slotnick and now Tennant are replacements for longtime Commissioner Kent Carper who retired in May.
Lance Wheeler
Wheeler told reporters that he is ready to welcome in the new energy that Tennant brings to the commission.
“I know that Commissioner Salango and myself are very excited to bring her on, see some new ideas and a fresh perspective of how we can continue to grow Kanawha County, continue to serve the constituents, and continue to work together to bring a brighter future here to Kanawha County,” said Wheeler.
Tuesday’s ceremony featured remarks from Commissioner Salango as well as Charleston Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin.
Salango said Tennant is the strong woman leader they needed who can someday pave the way for other women seeking public office.
“Natalie is used to smashing through glass ceilings, this is not her first, I suspect it won’t be her last,” he said. “She is tenacious, and she is uniquely qualified and brings a unique perspective to Kanawha County Commission.”
Mayor Goodwin has close personal ties to Tennant having attended West Virginia University together and being in the same sorority, she said she knows Tennant is the right woman for the job.
“There was one person in the room who stood out even though it was a large sorority house, and it was not just because she was the loudest person in the room, it was because she was the most engaging, you know, Natalie, she is engaging, and that was the first thing that made an immediate impact,” said Goodwin.
Amy Shuler Goodwin
Musical performances by the Capital High School VIPs also were a highlight of Tennant’s swearing in ceremony Thursday.
Tennant said with all the election excitement soon coming to an end, she is ready for the real work to begin, which she said is bringing all the issues she has talked about with constituents to the forefront.
“People keep saying don’t forget about us, especially when I’m in the eastern part of the county or the northern part or the western part, don’t forget about us,” she said. “Well, I grew up on a farm, so I know what it’s like to come from a rural area.”
She said some of her focus as commissioner will be working to bring highspeed broadband internet and clean, accessible drinking water to all regions of the county.
Wheeler said Tennant’s appointment as commissioner marks a new era of ideas, opportunity and growth for Kanawha County.
He said they will work together at looking at how all of the county’s strong operations can become even better.
“We’ve got to look at economic development, we’ve got to look at infrastructure, we’ve got to look at our police force, our Metro 911, all of the great services we provide through our first responders, and I think today is the new horizon of this county working together continuing those operations and doing what we can to best serve our county,” Wheeler said.
Tennant said she is now ready and excited to get to work.
“I’m ready to have a routine, you know, we work well when we have a routine, and then I’ll have a place that I know, they gave me a key, they gave me a way to get in, so I know that that’s really good, that it will start the process of having a routine so then citizens know that Natalie is going to be in and they can come see me in the office too if they’d like.”