AP Decision Notes: What to expect in West Virginia’s primaries

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fresh off President Donald Trump’s largely successful effort to oust several Republican Indiana state senators he viewed as disloyal, the governor of West Virginia is also trying his hand at retribution politics in a state primary on Tuesday.

Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey is not on the ballot, but he’s staking his political capital to reshape his party’s massive supermajorities in the state legislature more to his liking, including targeting several Republican incumbents for defeat.

The primaries will be a key test of the governor’s political sway two years into his term.

West Virginia voters also will nominate candidates for the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House. Meanwhile, Charleston’s Democratic mayor faces a primary opponent, and two state Supreme Court justices and a state Court of Appeals judge face opposition as they look to continue on the bench.

Some of Morrisey’s state legislative endorsements put him at odds with another prominent West Virginia Republican, U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, who is seeking a third term.

In state Senate District 10, for example, Capito has endorsed incumbent Republican state Sen. Vince Deeds, while Morrisey is backing his challenger, Jonathan Comer, a pastor.

This isn’t the first election in which Capito and Morrisey find themselves rooting for opposing sides of a West Virginia primary campaign. In 2024, Morrisey narrowly defeated Capito’s son Moore Capito for the GOP gubernatorial nomination.

In the U.S. Senate primary, Capito faces five challengers, including state Sen. Tom Willis, whose candidacy has prompted some Senate Republicans to pick sides. Willis touts endorsements from six of his fellow GOP state senators, including Senate President Randy Smith. Capito has endorsements from 15 state senators. She also has a key endorsement from Trump, which may neutralize some of Willis’ attacks on her record.

In Charleston, Democratic Mayor Amy Goodwin seeks a third term but first must clear another primary challenge from Martec Washington, a community advocate who placed a distant second behind Goodwin in the 2022 mayoral primary. Republican Brian Hunt is unopposed for the Republican nomination.

State Supreme Court Justices Tom Ewing and Gerald Titus face challengers in their special elections to continue serving on the high court. Both were appointed in 2025 to fill vacancies. Intermediate Court of Appeals Chief Judge Dan Greear faces a challenge from Jim Douglas in his bid for a 10-year term.

Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:

When do polls close?

Polls close at 7:30 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The AP will provide vote results and declare winners in contested primaries for the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House, the state Senate and House and mayor of Charleston, as well as general elections for the state Supreme Court and the state Court of Appeals. There are also three state Senate special elections.

Who gets to vote?

West Virginia voters registered with a political party may vote only in their own party’s primary. In other words, Democrats can’t vote in the Republican primary or vice versa. Independent or unaffiliated voters may vote in the Democratic or Mountain Party primaries but not the Republican primary. Voter ID is required.

How many voters are there?

As of April 23, West Virginia had about 1.2 million registered voters, including about 520,000 Republicans, 327,000 Democrats and 302,000 voters unaffiliated with any party.

How many people actually vote?

In 2024, the GOP primaries for president, governor and U.S. Senate each had about 225,000 total voters, which was about 19% of registered voters at the time. Turnout for the Democratic primaries ranged from about 90,000 for governor to about 102,000 for U.S. Senate.

How much of the vote is cast early or by absentee ballot?

About 30% of the vote in the 2024 primaries was cast before Election Day.

As of May 5, about 36,000 ballots had already been cast in Tuesday’s election, more than 17,000 from Republicans, about 13,600 from Democrats and about 3,600 from voters unaffiliated with any party.

When are early and absentee votes released?

Roughly 60% of West Virginia’s 55 counties tend to report all or nearly all of their early and absentee vote results in the first vote report of the night.

How long does vote-counting usually take?

In the 2024 Republican U.S. Senate primary, The Associated Press first reported results at 7:41 p.m. ET, or 11 minutes after polls closed. The vote count surpassed the 90% mark at about 10:06 p.m. ET, with the final vote update of the night at 12:40 a.m. ET, with more than 99% of total votes counted.

When will the AP declare a winner?

The AP does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

How do recounts work?

There are no automatic recounts in West Virginia, but a candidate may request and pay for one regardless of the margin of victory. The cost is refunded if the recount changes the outcome. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Are we there yet?

As of Tuesday, there will be 175 days until the 2026 midterm elections.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 election at https://apnews.com/projects/elections-2026/.