Brian Dayton: WV GOP made a mistake by closing primary (Opinion)

May 29, 2026

Every vote matters. We have all heard that phrase countless times, and the 2026 Primary Election proved it once again. Three races for the House of Delegates were decided by six votes or less, and countless others by just a few dozen votes. This proves that you, the voter, taking the affirmative step to cast your ballot can impact the direction of our state.

One entity, however, that did not seem to remember that every voter matters was the West Virginia Republican State Executive Committee. A slight majority of the committee made the decision to undo forty years of precedent and exclude unaffiliated voters from its primary. That decision had a major impact on the top judicial races in our state.

When I was in college I had the opportunity to serve two years as the state chairman of the College Republicans. West Virginia was deep blue at the state level, and being a Republican on a college campus twenty years ago meant that you were willing to be on the unpopular side of many issues. We fought hard to improve the Republican Party’s standing in our state. One tool we had – conservative unaffiliated voters.

Those conservative unaffiliated voters were critical in turning West Virginia around from 84 years of solid Democratic control. They helped drive the legislative gains in 2010 and 2012 that led to the Republican Party winning control of the Legislature in 2014 and maintaining it ever since. The thanks they received? The West Virginia Republican State Executive Committee slamming the doors in their face and telling them they are no longer welcome to help choose the party’s nominees.

The U.S. Senate race was at the top of the ballot this year. Just shy of 121,000 voters (23.3% of registered Republicans) cast a ballot for one of the six Republican candidates for that office, with two-thirds choosing conservative two-term Senator Shelley Moore Capito. On the Democratic side, slightly more than 93,000 voters (28.5% of the total Democratic registration) cast a ballot. Combined, that number equals roughly 214,000 votes. Here’s the kicker – there were 252,008 ballots cast in this Primary, meaning 38,000 voters went to the polls and voted for other races that were not at the top of the ticket.

Every voter who went to the polls had the opportunity to vote for the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals and the Intermediate Court of Appeals. It did not matter whether you had a Republican ballot, a Democratic ballot, or a non-partisan ballot – every voter had a say in those races as May 12^th was the general election for court seats.

Justice Gerald Titus, Justice Tom Ewing, and Judge Dan Greear were all on the ballot and seeking to retain their judicial seats. All three gentlemen are highly qualified jurists, but they were widely viewed as being Republican candidates despite the race being non-partisan. Many county and local GOP organizations endorsed them – deepening this affiliation.

In the division one seat, retired Circuit Judge H.L. Kirkpatrick and Circuit Judge Laura Faircloth both ran impressive campaigns that courted Democratic and unaffiliated voters. Combined, the two garnered nearly 111,000 votes, with Kirkpatrick winning. In the division two seat, Delegate Bill Flanigan clearly courted the same voters and achieved just shy of 115,000 votes, winning a seat. Family Court Judge Jim Douglas? Same story. Almost 113,000 votes in his race for the Intermediate Appellate Court.

Justice Ewing and Judge Greear received about 82,000 and 79,000 votes respectively. Justice Titus and Judge Kirby – the two Republican leaning candidates in the division one seat – received about 83,000 votes.

These numbers clearly demonstrate that the decision to close the Republican Primary had a major impact on Court seats. The three winners each received nearly 20,000 more votes than the number of Democratic ballots cast for U.S. Senate. Independents had the opportunity to send a clear message to Republicans – and they did.

Incoming Justices Kirkpatrick and Flanigan, and Judge Douglas will all help to shape the judicial landscape in West Virginia. I am hopeful that they continue to drive our appellate courts in the direction of applying the law as it has been legislated, and I certainly do not intend to malign their judicial integrity of philosophy. They all ran smart campaigns and sought out voters who were up for grabs. Good for them.

The choice now before the West Virginia Republican State Executive Committee is whether to open their doors back up to a quarter of the electorate or risk further unintended consequences. To me it seems like an easy choice. If they do not, expect to see unaffiliated voters find more ways to express their displeasure.

Brian Dayton is a lifelong conservative Republican and the Vice President for Policy and Advocacy with the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce.