West Virginia Republicans Launch ‘Yes on 1’ Push Ahead of November Amendment Vote
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia Republican Party has launched a public campaign urging voters to support Amendment 1 this November, releasing new “Yes on 1” material centered on adding an explicit U.S. citizenship requirement for voting to the West Virginia Constitution.
The party’s campaign graphic carries the message “Only Citizens Vote in West Virginia” as voters prepare to decide the proposed constitutional amendment in the Nov. 3 general election.
Amendment 1 is formally titled the “Citizenship Requirement to Vote in West Virginia Elections Amendment.” If approved, Article IV, Section 1 of the state Constitution would state that only citizens of the United States who are citizens of West Virginia are entitled to vote in elections held in the state.
U.S. citizenship is already required to vote under current West Virginia law. State code says a person may not vote in a federal, state, county, municipal or special election unless that person meets several qualifications, including being a United States citizen and a resident of the appropriate jurisdiction.
The question before voters is therefore not whether noncitizens are currently legally permitted to vote in West Virginia. They are not. Instead, Amendment 1 asks voters whether the U.S. citizenship requirement should also be expressly written into the state Constitution.
Supporters argue that placing the language in the Constitution would give the requirement greater permanence and prevent a future Legislature from changing it through an ordinary change in state law.
Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, the lead sponsor of the resolution, has argued that state statutes can be changed by future legislatures and that the constitutional amendment would provide an additional safeguard for the citizenship requirement.
The proposal received bipartisan support during the 2026 legislative session. Senate Joint Resolution 9 was approved by both the Senate and House of Delegates without a dissenting vote before being submitted to West Virginia voters.
Opponents have focused largely on whether the constitutional change is necessary because U.S. citizenship is already required under state law.
The League of Women Voters of West Virginia has announced its opposition to Amendment 1, describing the proposal as unnecessary. West Virginia Citizen Action Group has also opposed the amendment, arguing that current law already prohibits noncitizens from voting and criticizing the broader arguments being made in support of the proposal.
Secretary of State Kris Warner issued the official public notice in July announcing that the proposed amendment would appear on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. His office has also launched its online sample ballot tool ahead of the election, allowing registered voters to review the contests and questions that will appear on their individual ballots.
The official summary of Amendment 1 states that the proposal would provide that “in all elections held in West Virginia only citizens of the United States who are citizens of this state are qualified to vote.”
West Virginia voters will make the final decision on Amendment 1 in the Nov. 3 general election.
