ST. CROIX — Mary Moorhead has filed a lawsuit asking the Superior Court to order Virgin Islands election officials to place the federal delegate to Congress race on a ballot separate from territorial races in the November 3 general election.
Moorhead, a longtime educator and civic advocate who serves on the Virgin Islands Board of Education, is running as an independent candidate for the Board of Elections in the general election.
Moorhead, representing herself, filed the verified petition Tuesday against the Board of Elections, the Elections System of the Virgin Islands, and Supervisor of Elections Caroline Fawkes. She is seeking a writ of mandamus, declaratory judgment, and expedited injunctive relief.
The lawsuit argues that federal and Virgin Islands law require the delegate race to be conducted on a separate ballot. Moorhead cites 48 U.S.C. § 1712(a), which states that the Virgin Islands delegate “shall be elected at large, by separate ballot,” as well as Title 18, section 21(b) of the Virgin Islands Code, which requires the official ballot to contain a separate ballot with the names of delegate candidates.
Moorhead contends that the Board of Elections has nevertheless determined that the delegate contest will appear on the same ballot as local races in the 2026 general election.
The Board approved a motion by a 6-3 vote on June 3 to continue using a single ballot that combines both federal and local contests, despite objections from several members who argued that separate ballots are required under law. The Board voted to use a single ballot during this election cycle while continuing discussions on how to ensure future compliance with legal requirements.
READ MORE: BOE keeps single ballot despite requirement for separate federal ballot; motion to fire Fawkes fails
The single-ballot issue also came up during a debate among the four Democratic candidates for delegate to Congress hosted by WTJX and The Virgin Islands Consortium ahead of the August 1 primary. Former Senator Janelle Sarauw won the Democratic nomination.
Sarauw and three other candidates were asked whether they supported the Board of Elections’ decision to place the local and federal races on one ballot.
“If I am a policymaker and we are crafting laws, then it’s not what I feel, it’s not what I think,” Sarauw said. “It’s a matter of simply following the law. That’s a no-brainer. Whatever the law states, we should follow it.”
When asked if she would challenge the outcome of the primary or general election based on the issue, Sarauw said any challenge would have to come before either election.
The lawsuit asks the court to intervene before ballots are finalized, distributed or cast, citing the time needed to prepare absentee ballots, program and test voting machines, train election officials, and distribute election materials before Election Day.
Moorhead argues that the requirement for a separate ballot is mandatory and leaves election officials no discretion to combine the delegate contest with territorial races. She also argues that administrative convenience, voting-machine configuration, expense, historical practice, or policy preferences cannot override the statutory requirement.
Moorhead asks the court to declare that federal and Virgin Islands law require the delegate contest to appear on a ballot separate from the ballot containing territorial candidates.
The petition also invokes the Supremacy Clause, arguing that federal law controls if any territorial statute, regulation, Board resolution, voting-machine procedure, or administrative practice conflicts with the federal requirement for a separate delegate ballot.
Moorhead is asking the court to establish an expedited briefing and hearing schedule and order the Board of Elections, Elections System, and Fawkes to configure the November ballot and electronic voting system, so the delegate contest is separate from all territorial offices. She also asks the court to require the respondents to certify compliance within five days of any court order.
