Joseph (Joe) Manchin III (born August 24, 1947) is an American politician. He was elected Governor of the state of West Virginia in the 2004 election. He took office as Governor on January 17, 2005 and remained in that position until 2010. In 2010, he became a Senator for West Virginia, after the death of Robert Byrd. He is one of the least liberal Democrats in the Senate, having conservative views on social issues, energy, the environment, and the military. He co-sponsored an amendment, a change to a bill, with Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) that would require gun sellers to check whether gun buyers are mentally ill or have a criminal record. This amendment did not become law.