With just one week left before the filing deadline for the May 9 primary election, a total of 28 candidates have declared their intention to seek office.
A majority of the candidates filed papers on Jan. 10 -- the first official day for filing. Twenty-two candidates had filed during the first week, while just six more have announced candidacies this week.
As of 4 p.m. Friday, the following candidates had filed:
n Wilson W. Currey, Northern District, and Doug Gray, South Urban District, are running for the Board of Education.
n Carolyn Hall, Democrat, is running for magistrate.
n Charles Hall Sr., Democrat, is running for assessor.
n Jason L. Wilhelm, Democrat, is running for the West Virginia House of Delegates.
n Peter J. Conley, Democrat, is running for Circuit Judge, Division 3.
Harrison County Circuit Clerk Donnie Kopp has said he believes that the trickle of filings will increase closer to the deadline.
"A lot of people like to do it the first day, for whatever reason," he said. "But there are a lot of other people who have campaigned and announced (they will run) who will be here by the 29th."
Candidates have until 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 29 to file in person. Candidates may also file by mail, but the applications must be postmarked no later than midnight Jan. 29. The postmark must also be an official U.S. postmark, Kopp has said. No private postmarks will be accepted.
"It's slowed down the second week of filing," he said. "But I still think we'll have between 55 to 60 candidates."
All 28 candidates who have filed so far are from the Democratic party. Although Harrison County is traditionally a strong Democratic county, it is unusual that no Republican candidates have filed or contacted the Republican Executive Committee as of yet, according to Nancy Scardina, chairperson.
