ELKINS — Elkins City Council unanimously approved the final reading for an ordinance that establishes the candidate filing period for municipal elections during their most recent meeting.

Elkins City Code Ordinance 342 states that the candidate filing period will always start on the second Monday in February and will continue until “midnight on the third Friday thereafter.” This year the filing period will begin on Feb. 10. City elections occur each odd-numbered year.

According to a memo sent to council by Elkins City Clerk Sutton Stokes, the original ordinance stated that “the candidate filing period shall commence on the third Monday following the issuance of the call of the election.” Stokes called the ordinance “archaic” as the Code was previously amended in 2023 to end the need for the council to “call” an election.

“Previously, Code required Council to call the election ‘not later than 124 days preceding each

Election,” Stokes said in the memo. “Then, the date of the call would be used to calculate the dates of the candidate filing period…”

Stokes said the new permanent filing period should always fall in line with State Code §3-5-24, which states that “…certificates shall be filed not later than 90 days before the date of the election…”

“So it’s going to be the second Monday of February and it closes on the third Friday after that every time,” Stokes told council before they voted on the first reading of the new ordinance during their Jan. 9 meeting. “I figured out with some calendars that that will always mean it ends by the time it has to end before the election… that’ll allow at least those 90 days.”

According to the new ordinance, in the event of a special election, “the candidate filing period shall open on a Monday and close on the third Friday thereafter, provided that the closing date must be no later than 90 days preceding the date of the election.”

City Council also unanimously approved appointing Kathy Vance and Chris Quattro to be Ballot Commissioners for the 2025 Municipal Election during the Jan. 23 meeting. They will join Stokes on the Board of Ballot Commissioners and hold the positions for a two-year term.

Five city council seats will be on the ballot on June 10, including First Ward Council member Robert Chenoweth’s seat, Second Ward Council member Lisa Severino’s seat, Third Ward Council member Chris Lowther’s seat, Fourth Ward Council member Nanci Bross-Fregonara’s seat and Fifth Ward Council member David Parker’s seat.

Elkins City Council will meet again on Feb. 6 at 7 p.m. at the Phil Gainer Community Center.