Question?

 

In West Virginia, the process for filling a school board member vacancy depends on two factors:

• The length of the unexpired term: If it's longer than three years, or if it falls within a specific timeframe relative to elections.
• Action by the existing school board: Whether they take the initiative to fill the vacancy.

Here's a breakdown of the two scenarios:

School Board Appointment:

• The existing school board has the authority to fill the vacancy by appointment within 45 days [West Virginia Code §18-5-2(a)].
• If they fail to act within that timeframe, the responsibility falls to the West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools [West Virginia Code §18-5-2(a)].

School Board Election:

• This applies if the unexpired term is longer than three years and the vacancy occurs before the close of the candidate filing period for the primary election.
• In this case, the vacancy is filled by a special election held concurrently with the primary election [West Virginia Code §3-10(a)].
• The appointee by the Governor serves until the elected candidate's term starts.

Additional Notes:

• School board elections in West Virginia are nonpartisan, meaning there are no political party affiliations on the ballot [Ballotpedia].