By Sarah Richardson
Earlier this week, on Tuesday, the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia (ACLU-WV) hosted a voting rights town hall meeting at the Clingman Center in Lewisburg to address complaints received by area voters who were affected by recent redistricting. The redistricting, which was done in 2021, was mandated after the West Virginia Legislature enacted new House, Senate, and Congressional maps in October 2021 based on 2020 census results.
In attendance were Eli Baumwell, Executive Director of the ACLU of West Virginia; WV Secretary of State Chief of Staff Donald “Deak” Kersey; Greenbrier County Elections Department Deputy Clerk Jason Morgan; and Greenbrier County Clerk Robin McCullough (formerly Loudermilk); along with a slew of community members.
McCullough explained that when Greenbrier County was ordered to update voting precincts and polling places, her office was limited in the scope of how they could modify those boundaries. She said there is an eastern, western, and central district in Greenbrier County, and when splitting the county into those three groups she had to divide up 35,000 people within five percent accuracy. “We came within three percent when dividing those people up,” she said, with 10,896 residents being in the eastern district, 11,223 in the central district, and 10,858 in the western district.
“We had to divide all those voters so it would be an equal number in each of those magisterial districts, because we have those three districts where a lot of counties don’t,” McCullough explained. “When they changed the House of Delegates lines we had to move people to get their precincts to come up with those numbers, to come within that five percent. We tried to get people as close as we could to the nearest precinct … Some of you are driving 15-plus minutes to a precinct, and we don’t like that … but we had to go by the state code, the law.”
She explained that when they worked through the mapping process, the redistricting saw Lewisburg split up Rt. 219 with over 5,000 people affected through 12 precincts. Despite efforts to reach out to all 5,000 affected voters, there are “about 900” that have an outdated address on file with the election office and have been unable to be reached. They mostly consist of “HC and Route 1 addresses,” where any notices sent through the mail are being returned to the courthouse.
Kersey noted that state law places the burden onto the voter to update their own address, and election officials are unable to instigate that process on their end. Morgan and McCullough strongly encourage everyone to check their voter’s registration card to see if it has an outdated, pre-911 updated address. If so, go to the Greenbrier County Courthouse or visit www.GoVoteWV.com to update your voter’s registration.
During the open comment period, residents in attendance voiced frustration with increased travel times to vote on Election Day, with one man stating his polling place moved from a seven minute drive from his residence to a 30-plus minute drive each way. Another speaker said that she wasn’t notified that her road was redistricted.
Another asked if all WV voters are now required to present a government-issued photo identification to vote, with the answer being yes. Just a voter’s registration card alone is no longer enough proof of identity to vote in the state. All voters must show a valid, non-expired driver’s license (from any state), a passport or passport card, student ID with a photo from a WV high school or higher education institution, or a voter registration card with photo issued by a WV County Clerk or WV Secretary of State. Of the ID’s listed, if the voter is 65 years old or older, an expired ID will work so long as the document was not expired on their 65th birthday. View a comprehensive list and exceptions at www.GoVoteWV.com.
Morgan and McCullough said that they have the ability to print off a voter registration card with photo at the Greenbrier County Courthouse ahead of the election, if you are a registered voter with no photo ID.
Kersey recommended several times for interested parties to visit GoVoteWV.com to view sample ballots, voter registration status, voting locations, and more. McCullough recommended calling the Greenbrier County Courthouse to speak with elections staff directly if you have any questions or concerns regarding your polling place or precinct by dialing 304-647-6689 ext. 604.
April 21 is the deadline to update your voter’s registration information ahead of the 2025 election cycle. Early voting runs from April 29 through May 9, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. 5 p.m. on Saturdays at the Greenbrier County Courthouse. Election Day is on May 12.
