State Summary
West Virginia does not have automatic recounts. There is no close vote margin requirement for candidates or voters to petition for recounts. (Recounts are generally at the cost of the petitioner, unless the election outcome changes as a result of the recount.) Candidates may petition for recounts within 48 hours of the county canvass, weekends and holidays excluded. For a multi-county election, the 48-hour window begins when the final county certifies results. Voters may also petition for recounts of ballot questions, within the same 48-hour window. Recounts are conducted by hand in West Virginia, unless otherwise requested (see “Counting Method” section for details). Recounts cannot begin earlier than three days after notice was given to all candidates for the office being recounted; we could not, however, find a completion deadline in statute or rule.
Counting Method
Mix of hand count and retabulation
During a recount, “all ballots are to be hand tabulated, unless otherwise requested. This includes all paper rolls from the electronic touch screens. However, if upon request precincts are specified to not be hand counted, then the recount procedures from canvass [including the random drawing referenced below] are in place for electronically tabulated ballots. If the random drawing brings up one or more of the same precincts that were hand-counted at canvass, then those precincts must be counted by hand again.” Best Practices Guide for Recounts (2023), p. 9.
Precincts not requested to be hand counted will be counted in accordance with the provisions of W. Va. Code §§ 3-4A-27 and 3-6-9. See also W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-3.1.c.
“During the canvass, at least three percent of the precincts are to be chosen at random and the voter-verified paper ballots are to be counted manually.” W. Va. Code § 3-4A-28(d). If, as a result of that hand count, the total obtained by the hand count differs by more than 1% from the total produced by the tabulating equipment, or changes the outcome of any election in the selected precincts, then all of the ballots must be counted manually. W. Va. Code § 3-4A-28(d)(1) and (2).
In addition, in the case of any recount request, “the voter-verified paper ballot shall be used according to the same rules that are used in the original vote count.” W. Va. Code § 3-4A-28(c). Those procedures require that “[i]n systems using ballots in which votes are recorded upon screens with a stylus or by means of touch, the ballots are to be tabulated according to the processes of the system,” W. Va. Code § 3-4A-27(c)(2). “In systems using ballots marked with electronically sensible ink, ballots are to be removed from the ballot boxes and stacked for the tabulator” and then tabulated automatically (W. Va. Code § 3-4A-27(c)(1)), provided that “[i]f for any reason it becomes impracticable to count all or a part of the ballots with tabulating equipment, the county commission may direct that they be counted manually.” W. Va. Code § 3-4A-27(f).
Initiating Mechanisms
Candidate-initiated
Voter-initiated
Close Vote Margin Options
West Virginia does not have close vote margin recounts.
Candidate-Initiated Options
Candidate determines how many/which precincts to recount
There are no restrictions regarding the type of election in which a recount may be requested, or limiting the eligibility of certain offices for a recount, W. Va. Code § 3-6-9(b) and (c).
The petitioner must be a candidate for the office for which the recount is being requested and may request all or only a limited number of precincts to be recounted. W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-3.1. However, if the first candidate does not request a recount of all precincts, other candidates for that office may file a later request to recount the remaining precincts. W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-3.4. Each precinct may only be recounted once. W. Va. Code § 3-6-9(f).
Timing: W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-3.2 and W. Va. Code § 3-6-9(b), (c) and (f).
Voter-Initiated Options
Voters may request recounts for initiatives/questions
Recounts may be requested by “any qualified individual,” which is defined as “a voter affected by an issue, other than an individual's candidacy, on the ballot,” W. Va. Code § 3-4A-28(c). However, the individual must be “a voter of the jurisdiction of the election.” W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-3.1. Voters may also request a recount on special elections held to approve the charter for a city or municipality and the election of officers thereof. W. Va. Code § 8-3-6.
Timing: W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-3; see also Best Practices Guide for Recounts (2023), p. 2.
Cost for Candidate-Initiated Recounts
Payor of costs depends on outcome
Candidates are required to pay a bond, not to exceed $300, and are liable for the full costs of the recount if the election result is not changed. If the outcome of the election is altered, the board shall not assess costs to the candidate and the bond is canceled or refunded. W. Va. Code § 3-6-9(h) and (j); see also W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-4.7 for additional details.
Cost for Voter-Initiated Recounts
Payor of costs depends on outcome
Petitioners are required to pay a bond, not to exceed $300, and are liable for the full costs of the recount if the election result is not changed. If the outcome of the election is altered, the board shall not assess costs to the candidate and the bond is canceled or refunded. W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-4.7. For recounts regarding municipal charters, “[a] recount may be had, as in general elections, upon the party or parties desiring such recount providing adequate assurance to the county court that he or they will pay all costs of such recount.” W. Va. Code § 8-3-6.
Challengers and Observers
Party/candidate/initiator may appoint challengers; no guidance on observers; recount is public
According to W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-6.2, “a reasonable number of the general public shall be freely admitted to the room where the recount is being conducted.”
Recount petitioners are allowed to appoint one representative each; either the petitioner or the petitioner's representative may observe the recount and may also question ballots. W. Va. Code R. §153-20-6.2.a–6.2.c.
Rules for Determining Voter Intent
The statutory guidance provided for determining voter intent in West Virginia is not detailed, but simply states that “[a]ny ballot or part of a ballot from which it is impossible to determine the elector's choice of candidates shall not be counted as to the candidates affected thereby.” W. Va. Code § 3-6-7. See also W. Va. Code R. § 153-27.
During a recount, if the counting team “cannot agree on the intent of the voter’s markings on a ballot,” the ballot is to “remain questioned and the votes for that ballot shall not be recorded.” W. Va. Code R. § 153-20-6.3.b.
Resources
W. Va. Code § 3-4A-27
W. Va. Code § 3-4A-28
W. Va. Code § 3-6-7
W. Va. Code § 3-6-9
W. Va. Code § 8-3-6
W. Va. Code R. § 153-20
W. Va. Code R. § 153-27
Best Practices Guide for Recounts (2023)
Additional Resources
West Virginia Code - Chapter 3 - Elections
West Virginia Secretary of State
West Virginia Code of State Rules