CHARLESTON, W.Va. — One of the hot issues in West Virginia’s Secretary of State race this election season has been the voter registration postcard controversy.
Last month, a number of county clerks criticized Secretary of State Natalie Tennant’s office for sending a postcard reminding West Virginians to register to vote before the Oct. 18 deadline and to clean up the voter rolls in the process.
Tennant, the Democrat nominee, defended that decision this week on MetroNews “Talkline” by claiming her office has always communicated with county clerks.
“For the clerks to say they don’t know about it — they were part of the discussion in the Legislative session. We’ve sent them information. We send emails back and forth all the time telling them what takes place, so they knew about this,” Tennant said.
Morgantown attorney Mac Warner, the Republican nominee, also appeared on “Talkline” and pledged to work closely with clerks if elected.
“She’s not working with the county clerks. She’s directing things that happen,” Warner said. “What you’ll get with Mac Warner as secretary of state is somebody who will listen to the clerks, value their input. I want their input.”
Libertarian candidate John Buckley, a retired lawyer from Hardy County, also is in contention and recently was endorsed by the Charleston Daily Mail.
Tennant is seeking a third term after first being elected to office in 2008 and re-elected in 2012. She said she made significant strides to improve the election performance index in West Virginia.
“We improved 19 spots from number 45 to 26, so that’s why I’m running for re-election,” Tennant said, citing data from the Pew Research Center. “We’ve made such great strides and we can continue to do more if I’m in there.”
A 23-year Army veteran, Warner worked for five years as a civilian contractor in Afghanistan with the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Justice Sector Support Program.
He said he believes his military and law experience will give him the edge in this race.
“I will take responsibility for what comes out of the office. As I said, trained lawyer — I will read the codes. We will not have these fiascoes go to the Supreme Court like the current Secretary of State,” he said. “I will pay attention to the job.”
There are no term limits for secretary of state. The requirements are that a candidate be a citizen entitled to vote and a resident of West Virginia for at least the preceding five years.
Early voting in West Virginia runs through Saturday. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8.
Live coverage of the results of Decision 2016 begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday on the MetroNews Radio Network and online at wvmetronews.com.