There are three candidates running to fill 3 seats on the Board of Education: James Southern, Rikki Twyford, and Donna Joy (currently serving on the BOE).
The May election ballot is long. If you are voting on a Republican or Democratic ballot in Jefferson County, you’ll find primary choices for President, US Senator, US House, Governor, and several state offices, along with State Senator, State Delegate and County Commission (2 seats). The incumbent County Prosecutor, Sheriff, and Assessor are unopposed. There is no candidate from either party running for Surveyor.
Two Seats Contested On The County Commission
The Middleway seat on the Jefferson County Commission is open this year for a full 6 year term. The Charles Town seat is on the ballot to fill the remaining 4 years of the term (Clare Ath resigned this seat in June 2023 and the current appointee, Pasha Majdi is not eligible to run). On the Republican ballot there are 2 candidates for both seats: Michael Mood vs. Matt McKinney in Middleway and Jack Hefestay vs. Jacob Harris in Charles Town. The Democratic candidates, Natalie Grantham Friend (Middleway) and James Walch (Charles Town), are unopposed in the primary.
Local Non-Partisan Races At The End Of The Ballot
If you are voting in either the Republican or Democratic primary, you’ll find the non-partisan judicial and board of education races at the end of the ballot. If you request a non-partisan ballot (see previous page), you’ll see various judicial races, followed by the board of education choices.
Contested Judicial Elections
The 2 supreme court seats and the 2 local circuit court seats on the ballot have a single choice. There are 3 candidates running for intermediate court: Ryan White, Mychal Schultz, and Elgine Hecteta McArdle. For Family Court Judge, there are 4 seats on the ballot, 2 of which are contested: David Camilletti vs. Chris Gover in Division 1 and Laura Sutton vs. Carmela Cesare in Division 4. The other 2 Family Court seats have only 1 candidate. There are also 4 Magistrate Court seats on the ballot, 3 of which are contested: Roy Campbell vs. Lisa Shirley-Fraley in Division 1, Wendy Torelli vs. Vicky D’Angelo in Division 2, and Mark Renner vs. Ralph Lorenzetti in Division 4. Arthena Roper is running unopposed in Division 3.
School Board Members Serve 4 Year Terms
There are 2 seats up for election on the Jefferson County Board of Education, with 3 candidates running (the top 2 vote winners will each serve a 4 year term beginning July 1.
A complete listing of all the non-partisan, Democratic Party, Mountain Party, and Republican Party candidates on the ballot in Jefferson County is available on the Mountain State Spotlight website.
Early voting is available every day from May 1 through May 11 (except Sundays), 9 am – 5 pm at Charles Washington Hall, 100 West Washington St in Charles Town (across from the courthouse). Look for signs to the side door on North George Street. Any voter registered in Jefferson County can use this early voting location. Absentee voting is available only if you cannot make it to the early voting or Election Day voting.
Election Day is Tuesday May 14. Polls open at 6:30 am and close at 7:30 pm. You can check your Election Day precinct voting location at the WV Secretary of State website.
More Jefferson County election information at ObserverWV/Elections-2024
By Staff Contributor