CHARLESTON, WV (LOOTPRESS) – At a press conference on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2020, Secretary of State Mac Warner signed the declarations for the official election results certified by the counties for the Nov. 3, 2020, General Election. Official results can be found here.
“The pandemic challenged election officials to use all legally available voting options to guarantee every legally registered voter the right and opportunity to participate in the Primary and General Elections of 2020,” Warner said. “In West Virginia, we led a successful, record-setting General Election, and I am proud of how we worked together to uphold the integrity of the election process.”
In the 2020 General Election, voters cast 802,726 ballots, including 145,133 by absentee and 263,012 during the early voting period, the highest early and absentee participation in West Virginia history. The overall turnout is the highest since the record-setting presidential election of 1960 when West Virginia had at least 50,000 more residents than today.
Of those who cast absentee ballots, 1,562 of them were cast electronically, including 271 voters with physical disabilities that prevented them from voting in-person and without assistance, and 1,291 military and overseas voters.
At the press conference, Warner commended the state’s 55 county clerks for their close coordination and communication with his office. Collectively, county clerks managed 1,708 precincts and more than 9,000 poll workers, many of whom stepped up when alternate poll workers were needed in place of veteran poll workers.
“West Virginia’s General Election was deployed safely, securely and accurately thanks to the hard work of these election officials,” Warner said.
Warner also noted West Virginia’s efforts to deter voter and election fraud associated with the elections. In April, Warner and U.S. Attorneys Bill Powell and Mike Stuart announced the formation of the WV Election Fraud Task Force – a multi-agency law enforcement effort. The Task Force includes the U.S. Attorney’s Office, FBI, WV Attorney General’s Office, WV State Police and local law enforcement, and the WV Secretary of State’s Investigations Division.
The Secretary of State’s Investigations Division operates an Election Fraud Tip Line through which citizens can report suspicious election activities 24 hours a day. The anonymous toll-free number is 1-877-FRAUD-WV.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced today that West Virginia will join a case brought by the state of Texas in the United States Supreme Court regarding other states’ alleged irregularities and potential unconstitutional actions that undermine the confidence in the electoral process. The suit is not pertinent to West Virginia’s election, which was one of the most secure and safe in history. To read the Attorney General’s press release, click here. For questions or comments related to the case, please contact the Attorney General’s Office at 304-558-2021.
