About Bill

I’m Bill Ridenour – member of the WV House of Delegates for District 100, Jefferson County. I ran and was elected for public office for the first time in 2022. My wife and I live in Harpers Ferry near Route 115 with our dog Karina. We are proud to call West Virginia our home.

I served our country as a Marine and a defense intelligence officer for over 40 years. I retired in 2021 and realized I could not just sit back and watch our country fall apart, I had to take action. Now it is time to serve the people of West Virginia.

My campaign for WV Delegate focuses on protecting and securing our freedoms and rights under the Constitution. I strongly support the First and Second Amendment. I believe religious freedom is the cornerstone of a free society. I am Pro-Life. I am for LEGAL immigration. I am for small government, lowering taxes, and against government restrictions and mandates. I believe we should Keep West Virginia Free and Open.

We have three sons – my oldest son is an Army National Guard infantry company executive officer. My middle son is a cyber security software engineer supporting Homeland Security. My youngest son was an Army combat engineer company executive officer. Our family is also blessed with two amazing daughters-in-law and a wonderful two year-old granddaughter. My middle son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter live close by in Berkeley County, WV.

I have been married for over 35 years to my incredible wife, Jean, a legal immigrant and fiercely patriotic American.

Our awesome dog Karina is a rescue, she loves chasing squirrels, going for walks and hikes, and exploring the wild and wonderful West Virginia.

I am a member of the West Virginia Citizens Defense League; a member of the Gun Owners of America; a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW); and member of the Eastern Panhandle Business Association.

Marine Corps and Intelligence Experience

I grew up in Ohio, Tennessee, North Carolina, Maryland, and Indiana, joining the Marine Corps during the dark years of the Carter regime to protect the greatest country in the world. I was commissioned as a lieutenant and served in combat units during the 1980s, preparing to fight the Soviets and North Koreans. Thankfully, and largely due to the inspired leadership of Ronald Reagan, a cataclysmic war was avoided. I later served as a strategic intelligence officer covering ongoing wars and conflicts in Southeast Asia.

Eventually, I rejoined Marine combat forces and prepared for possible operations in Haiti, Iraq, Bosnia, and Croatia.  After the Iranian terrorist attack on the Air Force Khobar Towers barracks in Saudi Arabia, I worked at the U.S. Pacific Command combating terrorism.  

After retiring from the Marine Corps, I was in the Pentagon during 9/11, losing many friends. I rejoined the counterterrorism fight, deploying to Iraq in 2004 and 2005 as part of a team hunting al-Qaida and Iranian terrorists.  For six years, I led a global DoD counterintelligence campaign against al-Qaida, however our work was cut short by the Obama regime after bin Ladin’s death.  

I continued supporting strategic counterintelligence efforts against America’s greatest foreign enemies. I was a Distinguished Graduate of the Marine Corps War College, and finally retired from federal public service in 2021 as the Joint Staff J2 Chief of Strategic Policy, as I saw the utter futility of advising the feckless Biden regime.

My family and I at my Marine Corp War College graduation.