CHARLESTON, WV (WOAY) – A document obtained exclusively by WOAY lays out a formal complaint that alleges that Derrick Evans, a candidate who ran for the House of Representatives in West Virginia’s southern district, violated state law by registering to run for office while serving as a convicted felon.
However, the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office, while unable by law to comment on any specific formal complaints, says that felons on supervised release are not barred from registering with a party and voting.
Advertisement
The core argument of the complaint centers on Derrick Evans’s conviction and subsequent sentencing back in 2022. Evans pleaded guilty to a felony count of civil disorder following his presence at the United States Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
He was sentenced to three months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and restitution for damage to the Capitol and fines. The complaint filed with the Secretary of State’s office focuses on the supervised release portion of that sentence.
Because Evans is still on supervised release, the complaint alleges that he is not allowed to be a registered Republican. It cites West Virginia state code §3-2-2, which states that any person convicted of a felony is ineligible to register or be registered to vote while serving their sentence. It defines those ineligible to be registered to vote as “any period of incarceration, probation, or parole related thereto.”
West Virginia state code §3-5-7 requires that candidates include the political party they are registered to vote with. The relevant piece of law reads “For partisan elections, the name of the candidate’s political party and a statement that the candidate: (A) Is a member of and affiliated with that political party as evidenced by the candidate’s current registration as a voter affiliated with that party.”
When Evans filed his paperwork to run for office, he entered the Republican primary as a registered Republican voter.
Advertisement
The complaint argues that this is a violation. However, additional West Virginia election regulations and laws make the matter less clear.
The West Virginia Secretary of State’s office says that it has long held the position that supervised release does not disqualify a person from voting, unlike probation and parole.
That’s backed up by state law, which does not explicitly say that people serving supervised release are disqualified from voting. The law only explicitly states that those incarcerated or on probation or parole are barred from voting. That distinction could play a role in any investigation into this complaint.
The Secretary of State’s office has sole jurisdiction over investigations into election law. They may pay members of the West Virginia attorney general’s office to conduct investigations for manpower purposes, but those investigations would still be overseen by the Secretary of State.
Should the investigation conclude that there was wrongdoing, it would get handed off to a county prosecutor. Additional sources close to the matter believe it could be prosecuted in any county in West Virginia’s first congressional district, since Evans was on the ballot in each of those counties. Regardless, the complaint will be investigated by the Secretary of State’s office before any legal action is taken, and the office could very well rule that it is unfounded.
Advertisement
The substance of this complaint is different from previous allegations that Evans was ineligible to run based on the Fourteenth Amendment.
Those complaints argued that because Evans was convicted of civil disorder in connection to riots at the Capitol, he was ineligible to run based on the 14th Amendment, which bans people convicted of treason or insurrection from holding federal office. However, the Secretary of State’s office previously told media that Evans was specifically not convicted of insurrection or treason and could run for office.
WOAY reached out to Evans for a statement on this story. Here is his response in full:
“The people of West Virginia — not any government bureaucrat, and CERTAINLY not any TV station — should decide who represents our state in Charleston or D.C.” – Derrick Evans
The West Virginia Mountaineers (10-3) welcome the Maryland Terrapins (10-5) to Kendrick Family Ballpark Tuesday afternoon the first encounter between the two programs since 2023 and the first meeting in Morgantown since 2018. The first pitch is set for 2:00 p.m. EST and the action will stream on ESPN+.
Advertisement
The Mountaineers captured their fourth consecutive series of the season after taking two of the three games from Columbia over the weekend. West Virginia sophomore Matt Ineich and senior Brodie Kresser both blasted grand slams during the series. Ineich lifted WVU in game two with a walk-off grand slam in the 10th in game two, and Kresser ignited a 16-1 rout, capping a six-run second inning in the series finale.
Advertisement
Gavin Kelly leads West Virginia at the plate with a .436 batting average with a Big 12 leading nine doubles. Ineich and senior Paul Schoenfeld has raked in a team-leading 16 RBI apiece, while senior Matthew Graveline has clubbed a team-high three home runs.
On the mound, West Virginia is expected to start sophomore David Hagen. The right-hander has made four appearances on the season, including one start. He last started in the home-opener against Ohio where he pitched two scoreless innings and recorded a strikeout to collect his first win of the season. He holds a 1.00 ERA with five strikeouts on the season.
After starting 3-4, Maryland is 7-1 in its last eight games. The Terrapins won two of three at UNC Wilmington in the season opening series, followed by a midweek win against Georgetown before getting swept at Louisiana. The Terps bounced back with a pair of midweek wins versus Delaware and swept a one-win Wagner team.
Junior Brayden Martin is batting a team-best .443 to go with four doubles and 12 RBI. Redshirt freshman Ryan Costello leads the Terps in home runs (9) and RBI (21) and is third in batting average at .328, while freshman Ty Kaunus has a team-high seven doubles and has .269 batting average.
Advertisement
Maryland is scheduled to start freshman Nic Morlang. The right-hander has four appearances on the season, including four starts. He allowed five earned runs in his appearances, coinciding with his two starts, in six innings of work. In his last two appearances in relief, He’s allowed one earned run on five hits.
Advertisement
West Virginia leads the all-time series 8-5, including a five-game winning streak over Maryland.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to a series of parties in Morgantown over the weekend.
Morgantown police officers, West Virginia University Police and state police responded to reports of overcrowded parties, underage drinking, physical altercations and multiple injuries.
Morgantown Communications Director Brad Riffie said several citations were issued for open containers and underage consumption.
Advertisement
Two large parties were dispersed and six arrests were made without incident.
None of the reported injuries are believed to be serious or life-threatening.
The Morgantown Fire Department assisted in the operations.
Hancock County, WV — A Weir High School senior has been recognized as the 2026 West Virginia Student Journalist of the Year.
Hailey Hans was selected for the statewide honor after building a journalism portfolio since her freshman year. She also serves as the staff manager of Weir Student Media, where she oversees articles and is in charge of deadlines.
“When I was a freshman I was placed in the journalism one class, and I actually tried to get pulled from the class. But, then after I sat in the class and I learned a little bit, that’s where my love grew and then from there I continued to take classes, I helped pass a law, and I got to these national conventions. Where it just lit a fire inside me,” Hans said.
Hans is planning to attend West Liberty University in the fall to study education with a minor in journalism, with the goal of becoming a journalism teacher. She will now submit her portfolio for the national-level contest.
