On December 10, 2016, Ken Hechler died at the age of 102. A Democrat, he was elected to the U.S. House from West Virginia in 1958, and re-elected in all subsequent elections through 1974. In 1976 he sought the Democratic nomination for Governor. He did not win that primary, so then he launched a write-in campaign to keep his seat in the U.S. House. Although he did not win a write-in, he placed second, ahead of the Republican. The November 1976 vote for District Four was Democrat Nick Rahall 45.6%; Hechler 36.6%; and Republican E.S. Goodman 17.8%.

In 1984 he was elected Secretary of State of West Virginia, and he was re-elected in 1988, 1992, and 1996. In 1995 he ruled that unqualified parties would be permitted to use stand-in presidential candidates on their petitions, a ruling sought by the Libertarian Party that is still in effect today.