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West Virginia local trial court judicial elections, 2020
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- Main articles: State judicial elections, 2020 and Local trial court judicial elections, 2020
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of elections in America's 100 largest cities by population. This coverage extends to every office on the ballot for residents of these cities, including local trial court judges. Since this state did not have a city in the top 100, Ballotpedia did not cover local trial court judicial elections in this state in 2020.
Click here to learn more about how the judges in this state are selected. Please consider donating to Ballotpedia to help us expand our coverage of these elections.
Election rules
- See also: Nonpartisan election of judges
Circuit Courts
The judges of the West Virginia Circuit Court are chosen by the people in nonpartisan elections and must run for re-election when their terms expire. Each judge is elected to an eight-year term.[1]
Selection of the chief judge
The chief judge of each circuit court is also selected by peer vote, but term lengths vary by circuit.[1]
Qualifications
To serve on a West Virginia Circuit Court, a judge must be:
- 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.[1]
Family Courts
Judges of the West Virginia Family Courts are each elected to six-year and eight-year terms. Their initial term is six years and every subsequent term is eight years.[2] The elections for this court are nonpartisan contested elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be a state citizen, a circuit resident, a minimum of 30 years of age and have five years of law practice in the state.[3]
Magistrate Courts
Judges of the West Virginia Magistrate Courts are each elected to four-year terms.[4] The elections for this court are nonpartisan contested elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be a county resident, a minimum of 21 years of age and have a high school diploma or equivalent. Judges of these courts do not need to be lawyers, but they must complete a course in rudimentary principles of law and procedure.[3]
Additional elections
- See also: West Virginia elections, 2020
Pivot Counties
- See also: Pivot Counties by state
There are no pivot counties in West Virginia. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.
In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won West Virginia with 68.5 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 26.4 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, West Virginia cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 76.7 percent of the time. In that same time frame, West Virginia supported Democratic and Republican candidates for president equally. West Virginia favored Republicans in every presidential election between 2000 and 2016.
Presidential results by legislative district
The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in West Virginia. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[5][6]
| In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won four out of 67 state House districts in West Virginia with an average margin of victory of 13.9 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won one out of 67 state House districts in West Virginia with an average margin of victory of 34.4 points. |
| In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 63 out of 67 state House districts in West Virginia with an average margin of victory of 31.9 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 66 out of 67 state House districts in West Virginia with an average margin of victory of 46.8 points. |
| 2016 presidential results by state House district | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Obama | Romney | 2012 Margin | Clinton | Trump | 2016 Margin | |
| 1 | 38.66% | 59.24% | R+20.6 | 25.73% | 70.07% | R+44.3 | |
| 2 | 43.53% | 53.67% | R+10.1 | 26.82% | 68.57% | R+41.8 | |
| 3 | 38.13% | 59.95% | R+21.8 | 31.23% | 61.44% | R+30.2 | |
| 4 | 34.84% | 62.82% | R+28 | 22.30% | 72.79% | R+50.5 | |
| 5 | 37.10% | 59.96% | R+22.9 | 21.34% | 72.50% | R+51.2 | |
| 6 | 24.34% | 73.40% | R+49.1 | 13.41% | 82.40% | R+69 | |
| 7 | 25.92% | 71.64% | R+45.7 | 15.48% | 79.75% | R+64.3 | |
| 8 | 31.00% | 67.36% | R+36.4 | 22.69% | 72.65% | R+50 | |
| 9 | 28.50% | 69.28% | R+40.8 | 16.29% | 79.48% | R+63.2 | |
| 10 | 35.08% | 63.29% | R+28.2 | 25.67% | 68.91% | R+43.2 | |
| 11 | 35.37% | 62.24% | R+26.9 | 21.70% | 73.73% | R+52 | |
| 12 | 32.85% | 64.70% | R+31.8 | 20.88% | 74.86% | R+54 | |
| 13 | 37.29% | 60.44% | R+23.2 | 22.25% | 73.24% | R+51 | |
| 14 | 36.92% | 60.40% | R+23.5 | 21.70% | 74.02% | R+52.3 | |
| 15 | 27.42% | 71.38% | R+44 | 24.68% | 70.30% | R+45.6 | |
| 16 | 45.42% | 52.58% | R+7.2 | 36.10% | 58.50% | R+22.4 | |
| 17 | 41.90% | 56.20% | R+14.3 | 36.22% | 57.71% | R+21.5 | |
| 18 | 33.21% | 65.14% | R+31.9 | 25.32% | 70.41% | R+45.1 | |
| 19 | 34.79% | 62.73% | R+27.9 | 20.73% | 75.06% | R+54.3 | |
| 20 | 28.25% | 69.59% | R+41.3 | 15.85% | 81.80% | R+66 | |
| 21 | 23.29% | 74.37% | R+51.1 | 11.15% | 86.60% | R+75.4 | |
| 22 | 30.74% | 66.68% | R+35.9 | 20.35% | 75.36% | R+55 | |
| 23 | 34.16% | 63.17% | R+29 | 21.99% | 73.31% | R+51.3 | |
| 24 | 28.83% | 68.78% | R+40 | 17.02% | 79.79% | R+62.8 | |
| 25 | 21.56% | 76.17% | R+54.6 | 14.28% | 82.66% | R+68.4 | |
| 26 | 35.91% | 62.18% | R+26.3 | 26.16% | 71.47% | R+45.3 | |
| 27 | 25.92% | 72.27% | R+46.4 | 21.03% | 75.08% | R+54.1 | |
| 28 | 26.07% | 71.78% | R+45.7 | 19.24% | 76.85% | R+57.6 | |
| 29 | 25.31% | 72.92% | R+47.6 | 18.95% | 77.36% | R+58.4 | |
| 30 | 39.04% | 59.30% | R+20.3 | 35.16% | 60.01% | R+24.9 | |
| 31 | 21.85% | 76.00% | R+54.1 | 15.19% | 81.82% | R+66.6 | |
| 32 | 36.36% | 61.52% | R+25.2 | 26.42% | 69.21% | R+42.8 | |
| 33 | 33.20% | 63.50% | R+30.3 | 18.96% | 76.87% | R+57.9 | |
| 34 | 41.41% | 56.61% | R+15.2 | 25.67% | 69.81% | R+44.1 | |
| 35 | 44.95% | 53.41% | R+8.5 | 41.19% | 53.74% | R+12.6 | |
| 36 | 43.56% | 54.69% | R+11.1 | 36.13% | 59.51% | R+23.4 | |
| 37 | 71.16% | 27.03% | D+44.1 | 64.48% | 30.08% | D+34.4 | |
| 38 | 33.64% | 64.92% | R+31.3 | 28.33% | 66.88% | R+38.6 | |
| 39 | 29.70% | 68.75% | R+39 | 23.71% | 72.37% | R+48.7 | |
| 40 | 28.91% | 69.53% | R+40.6 | 21.21% | 74.29% | R+53.1 | |
| 41 | 28.54% | 69.10% | R+40.6 | 18.43% | 77.35% | R+58.9 | |
| 42 | 36.07% | 61.44% | R+25.4 | 26.74% | 67.94% | R+41.2 | |
| 43 | 35.02% | 62.41% | R+27.4 | 25.26% | 69.66% | R+44.4 | |
| 44 | 32.49% | 64.18% | R+31.7 | 18.98% | 77.03% | R+58.1 | |
| 45 | 27.22% | 70.71% | R+43.5 | 20.32% | 74.67% | R+54.4 | |
| 46 | 27.10% | 70.21% | R+43.1 | 19.26% | 76.24% | R+57 | |
| 47 | 29.72% | 67.43% | R+37.7 | 19.50% | 75.68% | R+56.2 | |
| 48 | 37.03% | 60.90% | R+23.9 | 27.38% | 67.16% | R+39.8 | |
| 49 | 33.62% | 64.28% | R+30.7 | 23.59% | 71.48% | R+47.9 | |
| 50 | 41.91% | 55.61% | R+13.7 | 30.56% | 63.37% | R+32.8 | |
| 51 | 44.28% | 53.14% | R+8.9 | 41.29% | 50.56% | R+9.3 | |
| 52 | 28.11% | 69.35% | R+41.2 | 21.26% | 73.45% | R+52.2 | |
| 53 | 25.80% | 70.92% | R+45.1 | 19.48% | 75.52% | R+56 | |
| 54 | 17.22% | 80.84% | R+63.6 | 11.20% | 86.53% | R+75.3 | |
| 55 | 31.26% | 66.11% | R+34.8 | 22.04% | 74.29% | R+52.3 | |
| 56 | 28.78% | 68.67% | R+39.9 | 19.74% | 76.02% | R+56.3 | |
| 57 | 28.38% | 69.28% | R+40.9 | 18.00% | 78.03% | R+60 | |
| 58 | 31.07% | 66.90% | R+35.8 | 19.51% | 76.36% | R+56.9 | |
| 59 | 33.93% | 64.29% | R+30.4 | 23.17% | 72.02% | R+48.8 | |
| 60 | 31.11% | 66.98% | R+35.9 | 22.28% | 72.32% | R+50 | |
| 61 | 51.56% | 46.41% | D+5.2 | 42.57% | 51.91% | R+9.3 | |
| 62 | 35.57% | 62.29% | R+26.7 | 26.07% | 68.69% | R+42.6 | |
| 63 | 43.32% | 54.43% | R+11.1 | 34.17% | 60.32% | R+26.1 | |
| 64 | 34.54% | 63.40% | R+28.9 | 24.45% | 70.26% | R+45.8 | |
| 65 | 49.54% | 48.66% | D+0.9 | 40.64% | 52.92% | R+12.3 | |
| 66 | 39.60% | 58.18% | R+18.6 | 31.14% | 63.51% | R+32.4 | |
| 67 | 51.50% | 46.02% | D+5.5 | 45.92% | 48.19% | R+2.3 | |
| Total | 35.54% | 62.30% | R+26.8 | 26.48% | 68.63% | R+42.2 | |
| Source: Daily Kos | |||||||
See also
| Local courts | West Virginia | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|
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Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: West Virginia," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Judiciary, "Family Courts," accessed September 25, 2014
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: West Virginia; Limited Jurisdiction Courts," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Judiciary, "Magistrate Courts," accessed September 25, 2014
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of West Virginia, Southern District of West Virginia
State courts:
Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia • West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals • West Virginia Circuit Courts • West Virginia Family Courts • West Virginia Magistrate Courts • West Virginia Municipal Courts
State resources:
Courts in West Virginia • West Virginia judicial elections • Judicial selection in West Virginia
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