Voters reject creation of Wise County electric authority

Wise County voters reject electric authority referendum

Wise County voters have rejected a referendum that would have marked a first step toward creating a local electric authority to work with large businesses that require lots of power. Officials had said the proposed authority would not have handled residential electric customers. Rather, it would have focused on big commercial and industrial customers such as data centers or advanced manufacturers that use so much electricity that they would requ…

Voters reject creation of Wise County electric authority

WISE COUNTY, Va. (WJHL) — Wise County voters rejected giving the county the ability to create and participate in a local electric authority Tuesday night. PREVIOUS: Proposed electric authority to be voted on in Wise County During the November 2025 general election, Wise County voters were asked a referendum question that read: "Shall Wise County, Virginia, participate as a member of an electric authority created by the County to operate wi…