WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
2024 REGULAR SESSION
Introduced Senate Bill 830
[Introduced February 16, 2024; referred to the Committee on Government Organization]
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1 A BILL to amend and reenact §3-10-5 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to
2 the procedures for filling vacancies in state Legislature.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
ARTICLE 10. FILLING VACANCIES.
§3-10-5. Vacancies in state Legislature.
1 (a) Any vacancy in the office of state senator or member of the House of Delegates shall be
2 filled by appointment by the Governor, from a list of three legally qualified persons submitted by the
3 party executive committee of the same political party with which the person holding the office
4 immediately preceding the vacancy was affiliated at the time the vacancy occurred. The list of
5 qualified persons to fill the vacancy shall be submitted to the Governor within 15 days after the
6 vacancy occurs and the Governor shall duly make his or her appointment to fill the vacancy from
7 the list of legally qualified persons within five days after the list is received. If the list is not
8 submitted to the Governor within the 15-day period, the Governor shall appoint within five days
9 thereafter a legally qualified person of the same political party with which the person holding the
10 office immediately preceding the vacancy was affiliated at the time the vacancy occurred. The
11 process to compose and submit the list submitted by the political party of the person holding the
12 office immediately preceding the vacancy shall be governed by the rules of the state executive
13 committee of that political party.
14 (b) In the case of a member of the House of Delegates, if the member was elected to a
15 multi-county delegate district the list shall be submitted by the party executive committee of the
16 delegate district in which the vacating member resided at the time of his or her election or
17 appointment. If the member was elected to a delegate district situated entirely within a single
18 county, the list shall be submitted by the county executive committee in which the vacating
19 member resided at the time of his or her election or appointment. The appointment to fill a vacancy
20 in the House of Delegates is for the unexpired term.
21 (c) In the case of a state senator, if the member was elected to a multi-county senatorial
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22 district the list shall be submitted by the party executive committee of the state senatorial district in
23 which the vacating senator resided at the time of his or her election or appointment. If the member
24 was elected to a senatorial district situated entirely within a single county, the list shall be
25 submitted by the county executive committee in which the vacating member resided at the time of
26 his or her election or appointment. The appointment to fill a vacancy in the state Senate is for the
27 unexpired term, unless §3-10-1 of this code requires a subsequent election to fill the remainder of
28 the term, which shall follow the procedure set forth in said section NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to amend the procedures for filling vacancies in state legislature.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
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Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 3-10-5