Northam seeks election delay

Gov. Ralph Northam has asked the General Assembly to postpone municipal and other elections set for May 5 as another measure to fight the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

All three Dickenson County towns have municipal elections next month.

Last week, Northam announced his proposal to move all May elections to the Nov. 3 general election. If the legislature agrees with his proposal, all absentee ballots already cast for May elections will be discarded, and those voters would need to vote again in November. Also, elected officials whose terms are set to expire June 30 would continue in office until their successors are elected in November and qualified to serve.

Further, the governor exercised his statutory authority to reschedule June primary elections from June 9 to June 23.

Unless there is a schedule change, lawmakers won’t act on the governor’s proposal until they convene April 22 in Richmond for the 2020 legislative veto session. That would leave only 13 days before elections are now set to take place.

In Clinchco, the incumbent mayor faces a challenge from the current vice mayor and another candidate. Meanwhile, all six council seats are up for a vote, with three incumbents not seeking re-election. There are five candidates and one seat will be occupied by a write-in.

In Clintwood, three of five council seats are up, with incumbents facing no opponents. In Haysi, the mayor and three incumbents are running unopposed.