By Esteban Fernandez
Times West Virginian
FAIRMONT — A lawsuit filed by Marion County Commissioner Linda Longstreth claims she and other commissioners were not told that a change to her district would remove her from the district and threaten her ability to run for re-election.
Longstreth filed suit against the Marion County Commission on Nov. 25 in order to protect her right to campaign in the Middletown Magisterial District.
“I believe the voters should be the ones that decide whether or not I remain a county commissioner,” Longstreth said.
Marion County Attorney Chuck Shields declined to comment on pending litigation. The County Commission is a partisan governing body. Longstreth is the lone Democrat on the board. Commission President Ernie VanGilder and Bobby DeVaul are both Republicans. County Clerk Julie Kincaid, who notified Longstreth of her ineligibility, is also a Republican.
The origin of the dispute traces back to boundary lines the commission created in December 2021. A magisterial district boundary defines a division within a county, and is used for purposes like elections, tax assessment and apportioning county officials. To be eligible for election to county commission, a representative is required to live within the boundaries of the district they represent.
According to the court filing, the boundaries the commission created in 2021 violated state law because the boundaries weren’t clearly defined. To create the boundaries, the commission relied on survey maps. However, the survey maps didn’t make it clear that Longstreth would be removed from the district and place her in a neighboring district. She was elected in 2020.
“Because of this procedural error in violation of the West Virginia Code, and the fact that the Marion County Commissioners relied on statements made by the surveyor and/or county clerk’s office that the new magisterial lines did not change the magisterial district in which the incumbent commissioners resided, neither Commissioner Longstreth nor other county officials discovered that Commissioner Longstreth had been moved to the Palatine Magisterial District until on or about Oct. 30, 2025,” Joey Garcia, Longstreth’s attorney, wrote in the filing.
Garcia alleges the maps used in 2021 do not identify which precincts were included in each magisterial district or lay out which landmarks the new boundary lines crossed. During two meetings of the County Commission in November and December 2021, commissioners were told the new boundary lines “did not change the magisterial districts in which the commissioner resided, with one newspaper article stating ‘all three of the current commissioners are firmly rooted in their districts and therefore won’t be affected by the change.’”
Longstreth filed for re-election on Oct. 8, 2025. Twenty-two days later, Kincaid notified Longstreth she was no longer a resident of the Middletown District. Instead, Longstreth was now a resident of the Palatine district, based on the changes from the 2021 boundary order.
According to the lawsuit, Longstreth requested that the Commission take up a Notice of Intention at a regular meeting to redraw the boundary line. The notice needs to be filed and posted at least 30 days before action on the boundary line is taken. The Commission has so far refused to take up the action and the deadline for Longstreth to file for re-election is Jan. 12, 2026 through Jan. 31, 2026.
Garcia seeks to have the court stop the 2021 boundary change from impeding Longstreth’s ability to run for re-election in the Middletown District.
“The residents of Marion County should not be prevented from voting for Commissioner Linda Longstreth for re-election to the Marion County Commission based on the Commission’s failure to follow statutory requirements,” Garcia wrote.
Garcia pointed out another consequence of the 2021 boundary change. According to Garcia, VanGilder is alsoineligible to hold his seat for the Palatine District to which he ws elected in 2024. VanGilder ran for his seat in Palatine under the 2021 boundaries, which he had agreed to when the change was made. If the 2021 boundaries have been in effect this entire time, Garcia argues, then Longstreth should be the duly elected commissioner for the Palatine District, with two years left on her term.
Garcia asked VanGilder be removed from his seat if the court decides to let the boundary lines stand.
“If the Dec. 15, 2021 order changing the magisterial district lines is declared valid, Defendant VanGilder should be removed from his office as county commissioner, because his seat must be filled by a resident of the Middletown District,” Garcia wrote. “As a result, Plaintiff Linda Longstreth should be declared eligible as a candidate for the county commissioner in the 2026 election as a resident of the Palatine District.”
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