State Election Commission To Consider Pritt’s Removal From Ballot

Once a candidate has been placed on the ballot for the general election, there are only certain reasons they can be removed. State election officials have been asked to try.   

The State Election Commission will meet next Friday, Aug. 7 to consider two written requests to disqualify David Elliott Pritt from the 2026 General Election Ballot.  

The now-former delegate from Fayette County, and public school teacher, was arrested and charged last week for “enticing a minor” after an investigation alleged he exchanged explicit images with a student before escalating to sexual abuse.  

Pritt formally resigned from the House of Delegates Monday after Speaker of the House and members requested Gov. Patrick Morrisey call a special session to expel him.  

He was first elected to the House as a Democrat in 2022 before switching parties to the Republicans five months later. He was re-elected to the House in 2024 as a Republican.  

Pritt won the Republican primary for House District 50 in May. If formally removed, the Republican executive committee of the district will have until Aug. 17 to propose a replacement on the ballot. If not, there will be no Republican candidate for that House seat.   

In a press release, Secretary of State Kris Warner emphasized that while a felony conviction is considered a disqualifying factor for a candidate, being accused or charged with a felony is not. Pritt remains in federal custody after he waived his right to a detention hearing Monday. Moore Capito, United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, said after the hearing that the next step in the case will be to present the evidence to a grand jury for a formal indictment. Pritt is currently charged via a criminal complaint.

Warner said the burden to prove that Pritt is unfit or unqualified to hold office is with the two people who submitted the written requests to disqualify him.  The two requestors in this matter are Greg Ingram, chair of the Fayette County Republican Executive Committee, and Dr. Robert Shirley Love of Fayetteville.   

“As one of five members on the State Election Commission, it is our duty to weigh the information and evidence presented to us against the law,” Warner said.  

Examples of disqualifying factors include: 

• Failing to meet residency or citizenship requirements; 

• Lack of statutory age for the office; 

• Lack of affiliation with the political party for which a candidate is seeking nomination or election; 

• Currently serving a felony sentence of incarceration, probation, or parole; 

• Conviction of treason or bribery in an election;  

• Lacking the required education, such as a law license for prosecuting attorney;  

• Any other prerequisite or requirement that must be satisfied for candidates to seek or hold a specific elected position. 

“I share the serious concerns expressed by many members of the public and public officials over the past week regarding the allegations raised against former Delegate Pritt,” Warner said. “My heart and prayers go out to the survivor or survivors of these heinous allegations. I hope that justice is served in the separate criminal proceedings.” 

Passed in 2024, House Bill 4350 modified the rules surrounding the replacement of candidates on the general election ballot. According to the law, Pritt has until Aug. 11 – 84 days before the general election – to formally withdraw. However, political parties are not allowed to fill vacancies in nomination “caused by the failure of a candidate to file for an office or by withdrawal of a candidate.”   

“What is before the State Election Commission is an administrative matter,” Warner said. “The right to seek public office is well-founded and equally applied to every eligible person. Despite the very troubling accusations, the five-member SEC must determine whether the two requestors present sufficient evidence showing that Pritt’s eligibility to remain on the ballot is affected by something other than being charged, but not convicted, of a disqualifying crime.”  

The deadline for write-in candidates is Sept. 15.