Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Lora Dyer
Lora Dyer is a judge of the Fifth Circuit Court in West Virginia. Her term ended in 2024.
Dyer ran for election for judge of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia. She lost in the general election on June 9, 2020.
Biography
Dyer earned her bachelor's degree in sociology and anthropology from Marshall University. She later received her J.D. from West Virginia University. Dyer previously worked as a circuit court law clerk, an assistant prosecutor and a private practice attorney. She currently works as an attorney for the state.[1]
Elections
2020
See also: West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals elections, 2020
General election
General election for Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
Incumbent John A. Hutchison defeated Lora Dyer and William Schwartz in the general election for Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia on June 9, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | John A. Hutchison (Nonpartisan) | 39.2 | 141,176 |
 | Lora Dyer (Nonpartisan) | 35.6 | 128,106 | |
 | William Schwartz (Nonpartisan) | 25.2 | 90,829 | |
| Total votes: 360,111 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
West Virginia held general elections for county judicial offices on May 10, 2016. This date coincided with partisan primaries for statewide and federal offices. The 2016 election was the first nonpartisan election for the state's judicial seats since statehood in 1863. Learn more about this change here. Candidates interested in filing for the election submitted paperwork by January 30, 2016. Lora Dyer defeated Kennad Skeen II in the general election for the West Virginia Judicial Circuit 5, Division 2 seat.[2]
| West Virginia Judicial Circuit 5, Division 2 General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Lora Dyer |
50.45% | 5,930 |
| Kennad Skeen II | 49.55% | 5,824 |
| Total Votes | 11,754 | |
| Source: West Virginia Secretary of State, "Election Results Center," accessed May 10, 2016 | ||
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan election of judges
The judges of the West Virginia Circuit Court are elected in nonpartisan elections to serve eight-year terms. Judges must run for re-election when their terms expire.[3]
The chief judge of each circuit court is selected by peer vote. Term lengths vary by circuit.[3]
Qualifications
To serve on a West Virginia Circuit Court, a judge must be:[3]
- a citizen of West Virginia for at least five years;
- a resident of his or her circuit;
- at least 30 years old; and
- practiced in law for at least five years.
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Lora Dyer did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2016
Dyer's campaign website included the following themes for 2016:
| “ |
After a great deal of prayer, I feel not only called, but that I have been blessed with the necessary skills to be able to serve as your circuit judge. I am a fair, unbiased, and qualified candidate who has not only the experience, but a true passion for the responsibilities of being a circuit judge. I am a candidate the people of this circuit deserve working for them on the bench. Sadly, our communities, like all of West Virginia, are under siege by drugs, and with that we are experiencing a disturbing increase of cases of child abuse and neglect. With the country’s highest unemployment rate and lowest workforce participation, a declining population and host of other social ills, we desperately need fresh ideas and dynamic, creative community leaders. It is time for us to step up to the challenges that threaten our children and West Virginia ideals. I am devoted to public service and have the perspective, care, and passion to tackle the challenging issues we face head-on, not only as judge in a court room, but as part of a team to the communities I would serve. Circuit judges can help our children navigate amidst the darkness we are currently experiencing in our State. As a mother of a four year old son myself, I care deeply about the plight of our children. Typically, the only truly pleasant transactions circuit judges regularly get the honor of facilitating are weddings and adoptions. However, I see opportunities to expand such positive occasions not just for circuit judges, but also for our children. Therefore, if elected, I am committed to visiting schools and facilitating opportunities to address the challenges we face together throughout the counties in which I serve. As a judicial candidate, I am prohibited by West Virginia law to state how I would rule on certain issues or hypothetical cases and can give no guarantees concerning rulings I will be assigned to make. However, I can promise the citizens of Mason, Jackson, Roane, and Calhoun counties that I will treat all that come before me with respect and dignity, under any and all circumstances, and that I will faithfully and impartially apply the laws of the State of West Virginia with an open mind and gracious manner. Judges are charged with making important decisions that affect the lives of all West Virginians. That is why there is no post of public service where temperament is more important. A judge should show qualities of patience, open-mindedness, tact, firmness, understanding, compassion and humility. Through hard work, I have obtained the necessary legal qualification and passion to serve as a circuit judge, but it was the grace of God that affords me the necessary temperament. [4] |
” |
| —Lora Dyer (2016), [5] | ||
See also
2020 Elections
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- West Virginia Judiciary Court Information by County
- Campaign website
Footnotes
- ↑ Lora Dyer for Circuit Judge, "Meet Lora Dyer," accessed March 30, 2016
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedwv - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: West Virginia," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Lora Dyer for Circuit Judge, "Why Run?" accessed March 30, 2016
| ||||||||||
