by Kate Shunney
As of press time on Tuesday, January 14, close to a dozen individuals had filed to run for office in 2020 through the Morgan County Clerk’s office.
Candidate filing runs through January 25.
Magistrate race
Johnnie Walter, the current Chief Deputy of the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department, has filed to run for Magistrate of Morgan County in Division 1. Debbie Ditto currently holds that seat.
Former magistrate and current bail bondsman Greg Miller has filed to run for Magistrate in Division 1, as has Berkeley Springs political newcomer Angela Schmidt.
Magistrate Kermit Ambrose filed for his re-election bid to keep his seat on the bench in Division 2.
So far, he has no challenges in that re-election bid.
Magistrate elections are non-partisan and will be decided during the May 12 primary.
Board of Education
School board member and former educator John Rowland has filed to run for another four-year term on the Morgan County Board of Education.
Board member and former teacher Pete Gordon has also filed as a candidate for re-election. He will be seeking his second four-year term on the school board.
There are two Board of Education seats on the ballot in 2020.
School board elections are non-partisan and will be decided during the May 12 primary.
Assessor
Deborah Weaver, the Morgan County Assessor’s Chief Deputy, has filed to run the office that her boss, Ronnie McIntire, will leave vacant at the end of 2020. Weaver is a Republican.
Sheriff’s race
Sheriff K.C. Bohrer, a Republican, has filed to run for a second term in office.
Vince Shambaugh, who served two terms as sheriff from 2008 to 2016, has filed to run for Sheriff of Morgan County this year. Shambaugh, a Republican, works for the Mineral County Sheriff’s Department and will retire from that position in March.
Morgan County Commission
Republican Joel Tuttle is seeking a second six-year term on the Morgan County Commission.
Prosecuting Attorney
Republican Daniel James has filed to seek a full term as Morgan County’s Prosecuting Attorney in 2020. James was appointed to the position and voters tapped him in 2018 to fill out the term of former prosecutor Debra McLaughlin. He is now running for a full term of office.
Candidate filing continues through Saturday, January 25. The County Clerk’s office will be open until noon on that Saturday to accommodate candidate filings.
Candidates can also file through the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office.
