The city of Keyser is to be commended for moving to end its long and expensive tradition of holding municipal elections every year, but city officials should carefully weigh whether further cost savings warrant folding the city vote into local, state and federal elections.
As with the half-dozen Limestone Road families who until last year received free Keyser water for decades, previous city administrations had long lamented the expense and inconvenience of annual elections, but it took Mayor William “Sonny” Rhodes and the current City Council to finally address the issue.
Keyser is one of the few, if not the only municipality in West Virginia that still conducts annual elections. Throw in the primary election, and that's two elections every year.
With city employees given the day off, city officials estimate that each election costs the equivalent of about $10,000, including printing and salaries for elections staff.
Under the plan City Attorney John Athey outlined at last week's Council meeting, the city will go to elections every other year, with the primary eliminated because it is a non-partisan contest. Council members' terms of office will be extended from two to four years.
As a result, Keyser will hold one election every other year, and see its annual elections bill reduced from $20,000 to about $5,000. Needless to say, that represents a significant savings for city taxpayers, and the change should have no ill effect on city governance. It can even be argued that longer terms will provide greater continuity on the Council, improving its effectiveness.
In addition to the altered schedule, Athey noted that the Council could consider folding its elections into the elections held at the Courthouse every two years for various federal, state and county offices.
While city officials must always be sensitive to saving money, other factors must be considered. Consolidating with the county may entail a loss of identity that a stand-alone election provides, with city issues diluted by the many other choices on the ballot. How well would candidates for city office be heard, amidst the din of presidential, congressional and state races?
Holding city elections at their own time, at City Hall, allows voters to focus exclusively on city issues, giving those issues the attention they deserve.
The City Council must weigh not only the benefits, but the costs that come with folding the city vote into other elections.
Keyser, W.Va. —
