Our election law already calls for a hand count of 3% of the precincts.  If a discrepancy of 1% is found, we must hand-count all precincts.  A candidate is also permitted by law to request a hand recount.  A change to this procedure will only delay the certification of the election.

Please vote NO on this bill which will make it more difficult for your constituents to vote!! Elderly, disabled, homebound citizens ... and our military service members ... all rely on absentee voting!! Why would anyone want to disenfranchise entire segments of their voting public? Why would anyone want to make the jobs of your loyal, hardworking county elections officials more difficult? The officials who ALREADY work tirelessly to ensure that their county's votes are secure and accurate? I IMPLORE you to vote NO on this bill. Thank you for your kind consideration!

WV already has almost the lowest voter participation rate in the US! Why in God’s name would any representative of our people here pass a law to make it harder? Vote NO!

My name is Jason Snead, Executive Director of Honest Elections Project Action, a nonprofit entity dedicated to defending the right of every American to vote in free and honest elections.

HB 4600 is a straightforward and necessary update to this state’s election laws. It shifts West Virginia away from the current postmark standard for advance voting ballots to an unambiguous rule that every ballot must be received by the close of polls on Election Day to count.

Adopting this legislation will promote integrity and public confidence in elections. By requiring that advance mail ballots be received by the close of polls, HB 4600 will speed vote tabulation and ensure the delivery of timely and accurate results. Shifting to an objective Election Day receipt standard also avoids messy post-election litigation. In states with postmark standards, these lawsuits often revolve around efforts to count late ballots that arrive without a postmark, and thus no guarantee they were not fraudulently cast after the election. Few situations do as much to sap public trust as prolonged vote counting or litigation aimed at affecting election results by counting otherwise illegal votes. This bill’s provisions make both situations less likely.

Moreover, passing HB 4600 would align West Virginia law with the policy currently in effect in the majority of states. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, over 30 states require ballots to be received on or before Election Day. This includes ‘blue’ states like Delaware and ‘red’ states like Florida. Of West Virginia’s neighboring states, Ohio and Kentucky all require ballots be received by Election Day. Furthermore, polling shows the public strongly favors these laws. In fact, polling conducted by the Honest Elections Project shows that 89% of Americans believe that ballots should be received by Election Day.

By clearly defining the deadline to receive a mail-in ballot, HB 4600 makes it easier for voters to plan ahead. Ensuring that a mail ballot is received by Election Day is a simple requirement to meet, and as I mentioned previously, is a requirement that is overwhelmingly embraced by the voting public.

This year alone, lawmakers in Kansas, North Dakota, Ohio, and Utah have all acted to set their states’ mail ballot deadlines at Election Day. I urge you join these states and align West Virginia with the clear national standard that all ballots should be received by Election Day.

Vote NO on HB 4600.  This bill would make it harder for people who can't vote in person to have their vote counted. This includes military members, first responders, senior citizens, and people with disabilities. You should be working to make voting easier and more accessible for all. This bill does the opposite.

I have 2 questions. How might this be affected by the new USPS rule about postmarks? Does this not restrict voting rights? I feel we should be including more people in the voting process, instead of making it more difficult.

Please vote down this bill that would disenfranchise disabled West Virginians, West Virginians serving abroad, seniors, and many more. Making the requirement such that ballots must be received rather than postmarked would not reduce fraud but it would make it so the USPS would be an active partner in disenfranchising West Virginians. Ask yourselves: should soldiers lose their vote simply because the mail wasn't *delivered* on time after it was received by the USPS? It it worth stripping votes away from West Virginians? Are there any documented cases of voter fraud in West Virginia that this bill would've prevented, or is this a solution in search of problem? Is there a method that someone would be notified that their vote wasn't counted if the USPS delivered it late? Or would people simply have to guess whether or not their vote counted? If there is a real demonstrated problem of mail-in votes being fraudulent in West Virginia, which elected officials have benefitted from that fraud? Or is this simply trying to disenfranchise voters who cannot make it to the polls in person for any number of reasons? How many West Virginians is it worth discounting their votes through no fault of their own in order to prevent how many cases of imaginary fraud? Thank you for your consideration and I ask again that this bill be voted down in committee and that the sponsors strongly consider what proven problem they are truly trying to solve. Troy Miller Kearneysville, WV

Opposition to WV HB 4600 I strongly oppose HB 4600. By shortening the window for counting absentee ballots, this bill will disenfranchise West Virginians who rely on absentee voting—especially seniors, people with disabilities, rural residents with slow mail service, military voters, and full-time caregivers. West Virginians should not lose their vote because of postal delays they cannot control. Rejecting legally cast ballots does nothing to improve election integrity and instead suppresses participation in a state with an aging population and widespread rural mail challenges. HB 4600 solves no real problem. It simply makes voting harder for the people who already face the greatest barriers. West Virginia should be counting every lawful vote—not discarding them. Vote NO on HB 4600.

I strongly oppose HB 4600.

This bill does not strengthen election integrity. It weakens democracy by discarding legally cast ballots for reasons entirely outside the voter’s control.

HB 4600 would require absentee ballots to be received by 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, regardless of whether the voter mailed the ballot on time. In a rural state like West Virginia—where mail service can be slow, unpredictable, and dependent on geography—this is not a neutral administrative change. It is a deliberate barrier to participation.

West Virginians who follow the rules should not lose their vote because of a mail delay they did not cause.

This bill disproportionately harms rural voters, elderly voters, voters with disabilities, and West Virginians serving in uniform or living overseas. These citizens rely on absentee voting not for convenience, but out of necessity. HB 4600 tells them their vote matters less if it arrives a day late, even when it was mailed on time.

That is unacceptable.

There is no evidence of widespread absentee ballot fraud in West Virginia that justifies this change. None. HB 4600 addresses a problem that does not exist, while creating a very real problem for lawful voters. That is not election integrity; it is voter suppression by bureaucratic deadline.

Our Constitution protects the right to vote. The role of government is to count valid ballots, not invent new ways to throw them out. A ballot postmarked by Election Day is a lawful expression of the voter’s will and should be counted. Period.

If the Legislature truly wanted to strengthen confidence in elections, it would focus on transparency, adequate election funding, reliable mail service, and clear chain-of-custody rules—not arbitrary cutoffs that silence voters after they have done everything right.

HB 4600 moves West Virginia in the wrong direction. It makes participation harder, not easier. It undermines trust rather than building it.

I urge the Legislature to reject this bill and stand up for the fundamental right to vote—for all West Virginians, in every county.