The U.S. Postal Service will suspend regular mail delivery and retail operations on Memorial Day, Monday, May 25, as part of the federal holiday observance.

All post office locations in West Virginia will be closed for the day, with normal retail services and mail delivery scheduled to resume Tuesday, May 26.

While physical locations will be closed, customers will still be able to access several services online at usps.com and at self-service kiosks located in select post office lobbies.

According to USPS, many kiosks are available around the clock and allow customers to buy stamps, print postage for Priority Mail and international shipments, weigh and mail packages, and track deliveries.

Some locations also offer additional self-service features, including rapid drop-off stations for prepaid packages, QR code label printing and USPS Smart Lockers for package pickup and drop-off.

The Postal Service said expanded self-service options are part of ongoing efforts to modernize retail operations and improve convenience for customers.

USPS is celebrating its 250th anniversary this year while continuing a nationwide modernization plan aimed at improving long-term financial stability and service reliability.

It’s almost over! 

That seems to be the dominant feeling swirling around the 2026 Republican Primary. 

Almost to a man (or woman), people I have spoken to about this primary have all expressed the same sentiment – they can’t wait until it is over. 

That is not that unusual to hear from the candidates, the media covering the election, or your average resident. Running for office is difficult. Campaigning can be exhausting. Meanwhile, voters have grown weary of the advertisements invading their social media, mailboxes, televisions, and radio. 

This is especially true this year, in what has become one of the most contentious and expensive primary elections anyone can remember. That is certainly true for a Republican Party that has had the majority in both chambers of the legislature since 2014. 

As of May 8, seven Political Action Committees had poured $4.97million into the legislative primary races. Most of that money came from PACs associated with Governor Patrick Morrisey and funded by out-of-state interests. 

Morrisey-associated PACs have spent nearly $3 million on legislative races, flooding voters with campaign material, often attacking their political opponents. 

The attacks being levied in the ads would lead you to believe West Virginia voters were at a crossroads, forced to pick between a staunch conservative and a radical liberal. One mailer that stood out informed me that this particular candidate “will have my back” when the radical left comes for my guns. 

Good to know. 

I just wish someone could tell me who the radical left is in West Virginia and where they are coming from. 

Many of the attack ads may be technically true, but lack any context or nuance and mislead the voters. Pointing out a candidate’s record, for instance, opposing Governor Morrisey’s $250 million tax cut plan, is certainly fair game. However, it misleads the voter when that same candidate voted in favor of a $150 million tax cut in the most recent legislative session and previously voted for the largest income tax cut in the state’s history. 

With that context, the voter gets a very different perspective of the candidate, a perspective that is purposefully omitted from campaign rhetoric. 

The purpose of the mailers and other campaign materials attacking candidates is to motivate supporters to go to the polls. Chris Stirewalt pointed out in a 2022 article he penned for the American Enterprise Institute that the political parties are “very much arranged around the idea of motivation over persuasion.” 

He continued to point out that the parties have created an atmosphere that “has pushed previously apathetic voters into action.” 

Will it work? 

It’s hard to say.

Recent polling by State Navigate looked at several key senate races and determined that most of them are neck and neck battles. 

Secretary of State Kris Warner reported that early voting totals were actually about 8 percent higher than early turnout for the last off-year primary in 2022. 

At least by this time Wednesday, it will all be over… for now. 

PARKERSBURG, W.Va. (WTAP) – Candidates running for seats in the West Virginia House of Delegates in Wood County say their top priorities if elected range from job creation and workforce development to health care policy changes and infrastructure, as they make their case to voters ahead of the election.

Incumbent Delegate Vernon Criss, a Republican running in House District 12, said jobs would be his top focus, arguing Wood County has been left out of state efforts to attract manufacturing.

“It would be jobs,” Criss said. He pointed to what he described as $340 million available through a high-impact, jobs-related manufacturing fund for companies returning to West Virginia, saying the governor “has refused to use these dollars to help the county.” Criss also cited restoring highway funding and funding for drinking water and sewer projects as priorities.

Criss said he would also push for foster care legislation in the next session, noting the governor vetoed a foster care bill this year that he said would have helped families and relatives caring for children in the system.

In House District 13, Republican candidate Melissa McCrady said her leading priority is repealing the state’s certificate of need program, which she said restricts medical facilities and practices from opening in the state.

“The main issue that I would prioritize is the repeal of the certificate of need,” McCrady said, calling it a program that limits a “free market” approach to health care by requiring approvals before certain services can expand.

McCrady said she would also like to repeal the inventory tax on businesses, which she said makes West Virginia less attractive for economic growth. She also said she supports religious and philosophical vaccine exemptions for children and adults in response to future outbreaks.

On education, McCrady said she wants to give teachers and families more voice in Wood County and reduce what she called burdensome requirements and restrictions placed on classrooms. On jobs and cost of living, she said reducing taxes and regulations and allowing the market to develop would create more opportunity for residents.

Incumbent Delegate Scot Heckert, a Republican running in House District 13, said his top issues include “infrastructure, accountability” and school funding.

“Top issues right now is infrastructure, accountability, for the school funding,” Heckert said. He said policy changes depend in part on what he hears from residents, but added he believes the school aid formula should be reviewed and that traditional public schools, homeschooling and charter schools should be held to the same set of rules.

Heckert said the state needs to do more to support teachers and address long-term retirement funding costs. On jobs and workforce development, Heckert said building a workforce is essential and suggested the state should look at incentives and assistance programs to encourage employment.

Asked about transparency and accountability, Heckert said constituents can contact him directly.

“Any constituent of District 13 can call me anytime,” he said, adding, “You can’t have one without the other.”

Criss and McCrady also emphasized transparency as a priority. Criss said the budget process should remain open to the public, while McCrady said she wants to be accessible through office hours and multiple communication channels.

Candidate for House of Delegates district 12 Charles Hartzog was not available to be interviewed.

Voters in Wood County will choose their delegates in House Districts 12 and 13 in the upcoming election. Details on early voting and Election Day locations are available through the county clerk’s office.

Editor’s note: The video for this story will be added once it airs. Please check back for the updated video.