BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. — Early voting for the 2025 municipal election for the City of Bridgeport is officially underway.

Polls officially opened at the Bridgeport City Clerk’s Office on Wednesday to accept early voting ballots ahead of election day, scheduled to take place on June 10. Former Harrison County Sheriff Robert Matheny and current Bridgeport City Councilor Clayton Rice will be on the ballot for the mayor of Bridgeport, with six candidates on the ballot for three seats on the Bridgeport City Council. Both candidates for mayor bring their own level of local experience to the race that will take place in the first election since the controversial exit of former Bridgeport City Manager Pat Ford.

“I want to serve the residents as the mayor of Bridgeport,” said Rice in his pitch to voters on WAJR’s Talk of the Town. “I’m not moving on to another venue of any sort; I’m well grounded, and my belief system lives and dies right in Bridgeport.”

Rice brings time served on Bridgeport City Council as well as experience on several local commerce-focused organizations in his multi-decade career. A lifelong Bridgeport resident who graduated from Bridgeport High School in 1983, Rice is a small business owner with decades of corporate banking experience working with First Exchange Bank who has also served as president of the Harrison County Chamber of Commerce. A current member of the Bridge Advisory Committee, Rice aims to continue to serve the community that he was born and raised in.

“I have the passion to work with the council as we look at continued revitalization of our downtown,” said Rice on what he hopes to do if elected as mayor of Bridgeport. “As we look at how we thread in more arts and culture into Bridgeport, with potentially an amphitheater.”

Matheny brings his own level of experience to be considered by Bridgeport voters, where he has served over 40 years in law enforcement. A fellow 1983 Bridgeport High School graduate like Rice, Matheny has served as a Bridgeport Police traffic patrol officer, an Anmoore police officer, and 20 years with the Clarksburg Police Department, closing out his career with two terms as Harrison County Sheriff. Aiming to continue to build off of his relationships established over his multi-decade career and a desire to help with public concerns over the exit of Pat Ford, which resulted in a lawsuit against the city, Matheny hopes his active role in the community will resonate with voters.

“I’ve been in the public eye for the last four decades, and I think the people know me, and they know my strengths and weaknesses,” said Matheny, offering his pitch on another episode of WAJR’s Talk of the Town. “I certainly feel that through my experience and my knowledge of municipal government, I can certainly hit the ground running.”

Incumbent Mayor Andy Lang is finishing his second term, and city statute will not allow him to run for another term.

Early voting will take place at the Bridgeport City Clerk’s Office until June 7 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., with offices scheduled to be open on Saturday, May 31, on the same operating schedule. Emergency absentee ballots will be accepted until noon on the June 10th election day, with anyone wishing to vote being required to present at least one legal form of ID before you are issued a ballot. With voting open for the next 10 days, Bridgeport voters are encouraged to make their voices heard at the ballot box.

“I can do what is necessary to get our city back on track. I think that I can regain, with the help of everybody, regain the public confidence in our leadership.” said Matheny.

Polls will be open on election day from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m.