Booths await voters at the Pennington County Administration Building during early voting on January 19, 2026 for a municipal election in Rapid City, South Dakota. (Photo by Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight)
West Virginia Republicans celebrated a victory last week when their voter registration total in Boone County surpassed that of Democrats for the first time in history, but Democratic Party leaders say party registration is only part of the story.
According to the state Republican Party, there were 4,892 Republicans registered in Boone County last week, compared to 4,887 Democrats – a difference of five voters. Josh Holstein, chairman of the state Republican Party, said the recent voter data – more recent than the last tally released by the Secretary of State’s Office – was collected by the Boone County clerk.
In one Press release Last week, the state GOP called the change in registration structure in Boone County, a historic Democratic stronghold, “transformative” and a reflection of a “profound political realignment” in the state.
“Momentum is overwhelmingly going our way, this is a majority Republican state and we are growing month over month (in registration),” Del said. Holstein, R-Boone, in an interview with West Virginia Watch.
Accordingly Total number of voter registrations As the Secretary of State announced on May 31, Democrats currently hold a majority of registered voters in only three counties – Logan, Mingo and McDowell. As of May 2022, there were more Democratic voters than Republicans in 21 counties across the state Voter Registration Data. And in May 2016 the Democrats had the majority in all but 13 counties in the state.
Nationally, Democratic voter registration has fallen about 43% since 2016, while Republican voter registration has increased by nearly 38%. According to the data, the number of independent voters also increased by about 18% over these ten years.
Mike Pushkin, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said that while there is no denying that the number of Republican voters in the state is increasing, turnout is still the most crucial metric to consider in elections.
According to the Department of State, about 21% of all registered voters cast ballots during the May primary election in West Virginia. Del. Pushkin, D-Kanawha, said Democratic turnout exceeded Republican turnout in several counties during the primary.
“While we are always concerned about such shifts in voter registrations, the important numbers are always voter turnout and the actual numbers we have – the May 12 results – speak for themselves,” Pushkin said.
Pushkin quoted the successful choice by two Democratic-backed candidates – Del. Bill Flanigan and retired District Court Judge HL Kirkpatrick – for the state Supreme Court of Appeals and the election of Jim Douglas to the state Intermediate Court of Appeals.
“We now have a majority on the state Supreme Court that is more responsive to the concerns of working West Virginians,” Pushkin said. “This is proof that our messaging works.”
Holstein said he agreed with Pushkin that voter turnout was crucial, but he wasn’t worried about Republicans’ future success. He said the Republicans’ increased voter registration momentum is focused primarily on teenage West Virginians, which gives him hope.
And even these primaries – the first in decades to elect independent voters couldn’t vote on the Republican ballot – Holstein said more than half of the ballots cast were for Republicans.
However, Pushkin noted that despite Republican successes between the 2022 and 2026 primaries, there was no concurrent enhance in the number of Republican ballots cast this year.
Overall, Pushkin said he didn’t think so Closing the party’s primaries will end well for the Republicans.
“We will all see that closing the primaries will not be beneficial for their party in the long run,” Pushkin said.
And while independents may not be able to participate in the primary, Holstein said independent voters will likely still lean to the right in the November general election.
“We know that the vast majority of these independents will generally vote Republican, and we know that they support our platform,” Holstein said. “Voter turnout is key, we know that and so do our voters.”
Holstein said Republicans hope to bring the remaining three Democratic holdout counties into the red by the end of the year.
“We really believe we can do this,” Holstein said.
Pushkin said the Democratic Party will conduct voter registration drives across the state throughout the summer to meet potential voters and hopefully rebuild numbers as the November general election approaches.
“We have great candidates on the ballot that will increase turnout and give Democrats good candidates to vote for,” Pushkin said. “We plan to challenge Republicans up and down the ballot – especially now in Boone County.”
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