Note: This version corrects early voting times to 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Berkeley County Clerk Tony Petrucci is letting voters know about some important dates and some changes for the upcoming Primary election.
One of those deadlines is coming up soon. Residents have until April 23 to register to vote in May’s Primary
Election.
“There are multiple ways to register to vote in West Virginia and our staff at the Berkeley County Voter Registration Office
is happy to provide assistance to any resident who may have questions about registering to vote,” Berkeley County Clerk 
Anthony J. “Tony” Petrucci said.
Residents who may be registered, but have not voted in several elections, should also contact the Voter Registration
office to be sure their registration is still active for the 2024 elections.
Residents also have until April 23 to change political party affiliation for the May primary election.
The primary election will be held on May 14 and the General Election will be held on Nov. 5.
Early voting will be held at the Berkeley County Administration Building, 400 West Stephen Street in Martinsburg;
Bedington Ruritan, 3947 Williamsport Pike, north of Martinsburg, and South Berkeley Volunteer Fire Co.’s substation at
3947 Winchester Avenue, south of Martinsburg.
“We hope these additional early voting locations provide an added convenience for residents across the county,” Petrucci
said.
Key Dates & Deadlines for May 2024 Primary Election
• April 23: Deadline to register to vote.
– Register Online to Vote: Use the state’s online portal to register, update your registration, check your
status or change your party affiliation. To submit your registration form online, you must include
your driver’s license number or an approved ID card number along with the last four digits of your
Social Security number. A list of acceptable IDs is available on the state elections website.
– Register to Vote By mail or in person: Either complete the online registration form or a downloadable
blank registration form, then print, sign and deliver it to your county clerk’s office by mail or in
person. Registration forms are also available at your county clerk’s office, public libraries, colleges
and universities, and senior community centers. You may also call the state elections office at 304-
558-6000 (or toll-free at 866-767-8683) and ask to have a registration form mailed to you.
– West Virginians who obtain or renew a driver’s license in person at the Department of Motor
Vehicles will be automatically registered to vote unless they opt out.
– Attention First Time Voters: You must submit a copy of a valid ID for first-time voters with your
completed ballot. Note that you must place the copy of your ID in the return envelope but not
inside the secrecy envelope that contains your ballot.
• April 23 – Deadline to change political party affiliation for the primary election. Voters are not obligated
to be affiliated with a party to vote in the general election.
• May 1 – May 11 (Excluding Sunday): : During this 10-day period, registered voters may vote early, in person at one of the three locations: 400 West Stephen Street in Martinsburg; Bedington Ruritan, 3947
Williamsport Pike, north of Martinsburg, and South Berkeley Volunteer Fire Co.’s substation at 3947
Winchester Avenue, south of Martinsburg. Hours for early in-person voting at each location are 8 AM to
5 PM
• May 8: Deadline to apply for Absentee Ballot: Registered voters who are ill, disabled, or traveling or
studying outside of their home counties or who meet other criteria can vote absentee by applying for an
Absentee Ballot. Get an absentee ballot application:
– Online: Download and print an application.
– By phone: Call the state elections office at 304-558-6000 (or toll-free at 866-767-8683) to have an
application mailed to you.
– In person: Pick up an application from your county clerk’s office.
– Submit your completed, handwritten application to your county clerk’s office by mail, email, fax or in
person. Details for each county clerk can be found at the County Clerk Directory. Voters can submit
an absentee ballot application for the primary election starting Monday, Jan. 1, 2024. Applications
must be received by your county clerk’s office by Wednesday, May 8.
– You must submit a new application to vote absentee for each election unless you qualify for the
state’s Permanent Absentee Voter List, which is for those who have a permanent, physical disability
or participate in the state’s Address Confidentiality Program.
– Track your Absentee Ballot using West Virginia’s online tracking tool.
• May 14 Primary Election Day:
– Voting at the polls: Polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Find your polling place on the state
elections website or by contacting your county clerk’s office. Bring an approved ID.
– Voters can use a touch screen to mark ballot choices, and the voting machine will print a completed
ballot for voters to place in a scanner or ballot box. Headphones and a tactile keypad will be
available for voters who require an audio ballot.
– Primary voting and party affiliation
– Voters registered with one of the state’s four recognized political parties (Democratic, Libertarian,
Mountain or Republican) can either vote that party’s ballot or the nonpartisan ballot. Voters
registered with another party or with no party can choose which recognized party’s ballot they’d like
or vote a nonpartisan ballot.
– Returning your absentee ballot:
In person: Hand-delivered ballots must be returned to the county clerk’s office by the day before
Election Day — that’s Monday, May 13, for the primary. Voters do not have to return their ballots in
person, but no one may hand deliver more than two of them.
By mail: Completed ballots must be postmarked and mailed to the county clerk’s office by Election
Day — that’s Tuesday, May 14, for the primary — and received by Monday, May 20, to be counted.
Completed ballots without a postmark that are received by Wednesday, May 15, will also be
accepted. Postage on the ballots is prepaid.
• IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
– Voters must present an acceptable form of ID, such as a driver’s license, U.S. passport, birth
certificate, West Virginia hunting or fishing license, or voter registration card.
– Exemptions are available to residents of state-run long-term care facilities, voters accompanied by
an adult who has known them for at least six months, and voters who are known by a poll worker for
at least six months. If you are a registered voter and cannot get an approved ID, you can apply for a
free voter ID card at your county clerk’s office.
– First-time voters who haven’t provided ID when registering to vote must provide a valid ID for firsttime voters either at the polls or with their absentee ballots.
• Voting with a disability
– West Virginia allows voters with disabilities to receive certain types of assistance or accommodations
when voting either in person or via absentee ballot. See the secretary of state’s Voters with
Disabilities web page for full details.
• More information about candidates and races
Key races:
– U.S. President
– U.S. Senate: one seat
– U.S. House: two seats
– Governor
– Secretary of State
– Attorney General
– Auditor
– Agriculture Commissioner
– Treasurer
– State Senate: 17 of 34 seats
– State House: All 100 seats
Counties will publish sample ballots for the primary election in the newspaper between Thursday, April 18, and
Wednesday, April 24. Primary sample ballots will also be available at GoVoteWV.com before early voting begins.
*WEST VIRGINIA DOES NOT ALLOW DROP BOXES*
