Joe Manchin’s Wife Hospitalized After Car Accident

Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin’s wife has been hospitalized after a car accident in Alabama, according to a statement from his office.

Manchin, who is not seeking reelection in 2024, has represented West Virginia for three terms since 2010, after the death of longtime Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd, and is currently the chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. On Tuesday, he announced that his wife, Gayle, had been injured in a car accident while on official travel.

“My wife Gayle and her colleague Guy Land were involved in a car accident on the way from the airport to the hotel in Birmingham, Alabama for an Appalachian Regional Commission event that was planned for today,” wrote Manchin in the statement. “She remains in stable condition and will stay there for a couple of days for precautionary measures.”

Gayle Manchin is the federal co-chairperson of the commission named in the statement. She was nominated and appointed to the role by President Joe Biden in 2021, with the Senate granting advice and consent in a voice vote.

The commission in question seeks to promote economic development in the Appalachian mountain region. Gayle Manchin’s other co-chair is Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky.