CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — The winner of the Republican House of Delegates primary race in District 71 will be determined by the Harrison County Commission at its July 15 regular meeting.
Del. Laura Kimble, R-Harrison, is contesting the result after her six-vote loss to challenger Tim McNeely was affirmed in a recount.
The county commission met Monday afternoon to receive the final pieces of evidence in connection with the case. The commission heard testimony last week.
Harrison County Clerk John Spires testified that the totals did not change from election night to the recount, but they did confirm non-Republicans did vote in the closed primary. There are instances of independents registering as a Republican to cast a vote and quickly switching registration back.
Deputy Secretary and General Counsel from the West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office David Cook said election contests like these don’t happen often, and it is the job of the county commission to resolve them.
“If a candidate is challenging specific votes, a recount is necessary, but if they’re only challenging the legality of the election or the eligibility of a candidate, they can go directly to the challenge procedure,” Cook said during an appearance Monday on MetroNews Midday. “In this case it’s held by the county commission, and essentially it’s a mini trial. The county commission will hear evidence and witness testimony, and then they will make a determination based on the relief requested in the petition.”
Commissioners will have two options on July 15. They can deny the contest from Kimble, and then at that time she could appeal that decision to Harrison County Circuit Court. The second option would be to order a new election for the 14 precincts in District 71.
“There are various forms of relief under the code the county commission could take,” Cook said. “Obviously they are ultimately going to decide who the winner of the election is based on the evidence presented at the hearing.”
If after a review of the evidence commissioners cannot reach a decision, their option would be to order a special election. If that is the ruling, Clerk Spires and his team would have less than four months to hold the special election.
“They could also order a new election if there’s no way based on the evidence they can tell who won,” Cook said.