CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Erik Wells’ bid to run for Kanawha County clerk was in the hands of the state Supreme Court after an hour of oral arguments Wednesday.
Wells, a registered Democrat, is appealing to the high court in an attempt to run as an independent candidate against incumbent Vera McCormick after an Aug. 18 Kanawha Circuit Court ruling declared him ineligible to run.
“If he had abandoned his registration as a Democrat, and registered in the appropriate time period as an independent, then clearly he could have done that,” argued Kanawha County prosecutor Chuck Miller Wednesday. “But what he is asking this court to do is put the stamp of approval on his failure or unwillingness to abandon his banner of being a Democrat, and wave the flag of being an independent on the ballot.”
Wells’ attorney Pat Maroney argued that Wells had secured the 1 percent of the vote necessary in the last general election to appear on the ballot, according to state code.
But Chief Justice Menis Ketchum questioned Maroney as to whether allowing Wells on the ballot would confuse voters.
“No, your honor, it won’t, because the voters won’t know whether he’s a Democrat or Republican, number one. Maybe some will; some won’t,” Maroney responded.
“It’ll get out in the news, in the newspaper, in columns in the Sunday paper or something?,” challenged Ketchum.
“That could happen,” Maroney admitted. “But what we’re talking about is ballot access.”
Miller argued for his part that allowing Wells as a Democrat to run unaffiliated opens Pandora’s box for future fraudulent or dirty election practices.
“A candidate in one of the major parties could not file in the primary. Could lure the opponent into a false sense of security. They wouldn’t campaign, perhaps they wouldn’t raise money,” he said. “Then, jump out of the weeds toward the end of the filing period prior to Aug. 1, and come out and get on the ballot. It just seems to me like it is fraught with potential for confusion and fraud.”
Maroney also admitted Wells could have run as a Democrat in the primary, but he chose not to.
“And the party didn’t choose him to go. Because a party can only act through the party in a formal setting, as this court has held in a case that Justice Workman wrote several years ago.”
With deadlines to certify and print the Nov. 8 election ballot looming, the court could issue a ruling by week’s end.