WORKMAN, Justice:
This is an appeal from the circuit court’s August 18, 2016, order granting respondent State of West Virginia’s (hereinafter “respondent”) amended petition for writ of quo war-ranto, disallowing petitioner Erik Patrick Wells’ (hereinafter “petitioner”) candidacy for the office of Kanawha County Clerk, The circuit court found that, as a registered member of the Democratic Party, petitioner’s candidacy was governed by the provisions of West Virginia Code § 3-6-7 (2016) and that petitioner had failed to comply with its requirements, disqualifying him as a candidate for the office of Kanawha County Clerk.
Based upon our review of the briefs, legal authorities, appendix record, and upon consideration of arguments of counsel, we conclude that West Virginia Code § 3-6-7 is applicable to any person who seeks to hold an office or political party position to be filled by primary or general election. Therefore, in light of petitioner’s failure to comply with the requirements of West Virginia Code § 3-6-7, we affirm the circuit court’s order granting the petition for writ of quo warranto.
I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
On July 18, 2016, petitioner, a registered Democrat, filed a “Candidate’s Certificate of Announcement for 2016 Partisan Elections” and paid the required filing fee to the Kana-wha County Clerk’s office. Petitioner left blank1 a portion of the form, which states as follows:
I am a member of and affiliated with the following political party:_I am a member of and affiliated with this political party as evidenced by my current voter’s registration and I have not been registered as a member of another political party within sixty days of this date. (W.Va. Code § 3-5-7(d)(6))
Subsequently, petitioner filed a “Minor Party or Independent Candidate Nomination Petition,” seeking to become a certificate nomination candidate pursuant to West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 (2009). On this form, in the space provided for “Party,” the certificate stated: “Independent.” Petitioner submitted signatures from 1,019 individuals; the County Clerk invalidated 119 of the signatures, leaving 900 signatures as valid.2
On August 10, 2016, respondent filed a petition for writ of quo warranto pursuant to West Virginia Code § 63-2-1 et seq. (1923),3 and the following day filed its amended petition. The circuit court conducted a hearing on this matter on August 12, 2016, during which a key issue was petitioner’s failure to fully complete the certificate of announcement, having left his party affiliation blank. During the hearing, petitioner [735]*735testified that he was 'and remained a registered Democrat and had voted on May 10, 2016, in the Democratic primary. Petitioner testified that he was running for the office of Kanawha County Clerk as an “independent,” as indicated on the “Minor Party or Independent Candidate Nomination Petition.” Petitioner further testified that he read and was aware of the requirements imposed on a candidate filing a certificate of announcement, but had not decided to run for office until after the primary election.4
By order entered August 18, 2016, the circuit court granted respondent’s petition for writ of quo warranto and disallowed petitioner’s candidacy for the office of Kanawha County Clerk in the November 8, 2016, general election. Specifically, the. circuit court found that petitioner failed to fully complete the certificate of announcement required by West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 and that regardless, as a registered Democrat, petitioner could not avail himself of the certificate nomination process under West Virginia Code § 3-5-23. As pertained to the certificate of announcement, the circuit court reasoned that
[b]y failing to include the party affiliation in the certificate of announcement, the ... [petitioner] created confusion for the voters regarding precisely who is running for office and what party and party philosophies [petitioner] is affiliated with. Further, the failure to include a party affiliation in the certificate of announcement will create an impossible situation for election officials in preparing the ballet [sic] and for voters when voting.
The circuit court stated that if petitioner’s name appeared on the ballot as a Democrat, it would create the impression that he was on the ballot because he either won the primary election or had his name placed on the ballot by the Kanawha Democratic Executive Committee or its chairperson. On the other hand, if his name appeared as “independent,” it would be inaccurate because petitioner is a registered Democrat. The circuit court further found that West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 was for use by “persons who seek elective office and who are not members of an organized party having a nominating election or a nominating convention.”
The circuit court further rejected petitioner’s contention that he presented a viable, constitutionally-based “ballot access” challenge because “as a registered Democrat, [petitioner] had access to the ballot”' and found that petitioner could have simply followed the various requirements to run for office. Specifically,' the circuit court noted that petitioner could have filed a certificate of announcement for county-wide office or pur-suéd having the Kanawha County Democratic Executive Committee place his name on the ballot.5 This appeal followed.
II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
Petitioner’s appeal raises the issues of the application and scope of West Virginia Code §' 3-5-7 and West Virginia Code §§ 3-5-23 and -24. In this regard, we have held [736]*736that “ ‘[w]here the issue on an appeal from the circuit court is clearly a question of law or involving an interpretation of a statute, we apply a de novo standard of review.’ Syllabus point 1, Chrystal R.M. v. Charlie A.L., 194 W.Va. 138, 459 S.E.2d 415 (1995).” Syl. pt. 3, Alden v. Harpers Ferry Police Civil Serv. Comm’n, 209 W.Va. 83, 543 S.E.2d 364 (2001). Mindful of this applicable standard, we now consider the substantive issues raised by the parties.
III. DISCUSSION
Petitioner raises three assignments of qr-ror. First, petitioner asserts that the circuit court erred in concluding that the certificate of announcement requirements contained in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7(d)(6) are applicable to a candidate seeking nomination by certificate. Second, petitioner contends that the circuit court erred in concluding that, as a registered Democrat, he could not avail himself of the certificate nomination process outlined in West Virginia Code § 3-5-23. Finally, petitioner asserts that in denying petitioner’s candidacy, the circuit court denied him ballot access, in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution and Article III, Sections 7,16 and 17 and Article IV, Sections 1 and 4 of the West Virginia Constitution.
Before we address petitioner’s arguments, we note that the West Virginia Constitution reserves to the Legislature the ability to make laws concerning public officials and the manner in which those officials assume office. In syllabus point four of Morris v. Board of Canvassers of City of Charleston, 49 W.Va. 251, 38 S.E. 500 (1901), this Court held: “The constitution, in article IV, section 11, gives wide powers to the legislature to make all reasonable regulations and restrictions as to preparation of ballots and the conduct and returns of elections.”6
Article IV, section 8 provides that “[t]he Legislature, in cases not provided for in this constitution, shall prescribe, by general laws, the terms of office, powers, duties and compensation of all public officers and agents, and the manner in which they shall be elected, appointed and removed.” Additionally, Article IV, Section 11 provides that
[t]he Legislature shall prescribe the manner of conducting and making returns of elections, and of determining contested elections; and shall pass such laws as may be necessary and proper to prevent intimidation, disorder or violence at the polls, and corruption or fraud in voting, counting the vote, ascertaining or declaring the result or fraud in any manner upon the ballot.
This Court is further mindful that the Legislature “inevitably must, enact reasonable regulations of parties, elections, and ballots to reduce election- and campaign-related disorder.” Timmons v. Twin Cities Area New Party, 520 U.S. 351, 358, 117 S.Ct. 1364, 137 L.Ed.2d 589 (1997).
A. Applicability of West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 to certifícate nomination candidates under West Virginia Code § 3-5-23
As indicated above, petitioner, a registered Democrat, seeks .to be a candidate for the office of Kanawha County Clerk by utilizing the “certificate nomination” process outlined in West Virginia Code § 3-5-23. The statute provides, in pertinent part:
Groups of citizens having no party organization may nominate candidates who are not already candidates in the primary election for public office otherwise than by conventions or primary elections. In that ease, the candidate or candidates, jointly or severally, shall file a nomination certificate - in accordance with the provisions of this section and the provisions of section twenty-four of this article.
W. Va. Code § 3-5-23(a).7 The nominating certificate must state the name and residence [737]*737of each of the candidates; that he or she is legally qualified to hold the office; that the subscribers are legally qualified and duly registered as voters and desire to have the candidates placed on the ballot; and “may designate, by not more than five words, a brief name of the party which the candidates represent and may adopt a device or emblem to be printed on the official ballot.” W. Va. Code § 3-5-23(d). Upon fulfillment of these criteria, the statute provides that “[a]ll candidates nominated by the signing of the certificates shall have their names placed on the official ballot as candidates, as if otherwise nominated under the provisions of this chapter.” Id.
As noted above, the circuit court found that, even assuming petitioner was a proper certificate nomination candidate, he was required to file the certificate of announcement described in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7(d) and because petitioner refused to identify his party affiliation in the certificate of announcement, the certificate was noneompliant and therefore precluded his candidacy.
West Virginia Code § 3-5~7(a) provides as follows:
Any person who is eligible and seeks to hold an office or political party position to be filled by election in any primary or general election held under the provisions of this chapter shall file a certificate of announcement declaring his or her candidacy for the nomination or election to the .office.
(emphasis added). Significantly, West Virginia Code 3-5-7(c) states that such certificate of announcement must be filed no earlier than the second Monday in January and no later than the last Saturday in January; petitioner filed his certificate of nomination in July, six months after the time period prescribed in the statute. Moreover, for partisan elections such as the Kanawha County Clerk, the certificate must contain
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; and (B) has not been registered as a voter affiliated with any ,¡other political party for a period of sixty days before the date of filing the announcement ...
W. Va. Code § 3-5-7(d). In spite of the broad, compulsory language of the statute requiring “[a]ny person” seeking office in a primary “or general election” to file a certificate of announcement of his candidacy for the “nomination or election to the office,” petitioner makes two arguments in support of its- inapplicability to his certificate nomination candidacy. W. Va. Code § 3-5-7(a) (emphasis added).
First, petitioner argues that our decision in State ex rel. Browne v. Hechler, 197 W.Va. 612, 476 S.E.2d 559 (1996), ’is dispositive. In Browne, the Court held that the 1991 version of West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 applied only to primary elections and therefore certificate nomination candidates were “not required to file a declaration of candidacy pursuant to W. Va. Code § 3-5-7 (1991).” Syl. Pt. 2, in part, Browne. Respondent correctly counters, however, that West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 has undergone a critical amendment since that time.
In Browne, the Court sought to ascertain the deadline for the filing of a nomination certificate and fee under the 1986 version of West Virginia Code § 3-5-23, which used the terms “declaration”8 and “certificate” in a manner creating ambiguity as to the filing deadlines. 197 W.Va. at 613-14, 476 S.E.2d at 560-61. Respondent suggested that the “declaration” referred to therein was distinguishable from the nomination certificate and actually referred to the certificate of announcement'required by West Virginia Code § 3-5-7. Id. at 614, 476 S.E.2d at 561. The Browne Court quickly rejected this argument, observing that West Virginia Code § 3—6—7(f) stated that “[t]he provisions of this section shall apply to the primary election. ...” and was therefore “by its own [738]*738terms, inapplicable” to a certificate nomination .candidate, who does not participate in the primary election. Id.9
■ This provision of West Virginia Code § -3-5-7, as it existed at the time of Browne, seemingly confining applicability to candidates participating in a primary election survived each of the Legislature’s various amendments enacted in 1998, 2005, 2007, and 2009. However, the 2015 amendments to the statute eliminated this provision in its entirety. Accordingly, there is no longer any wording contained within the language of the statute stating that its provisions apply exclusively to candidates participating in the primary election. In fact, the sole reference to its applicability is now the long-standing opening statement that the statute and its requirements are mandatory upon “[a]ny person who is eligible and seeks to hold an office or political party position to be filled by election in any primary or general eleetion[.]” W. Va. Code § 3-5-7(a) (emphasis added).
What this Court is left with, then, is the plain language of West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 which unmistakably makes itself applicable to all candidacies, including certificate nomination candidacies, and clearly mandates that all those seeking office in a primary or general election file a statutorily-eompliant certificate of announcement. Whether this was the intention of the Legislature in making the 2015 amendments to the statute is not for this Court to speculate: “Where the language of a statute is free from ambiguity, its plain meaning is to be accepted and applied without resort to interpretation.” Syl. Pt. 2, Crockett v. Andrews, 153 W.Va. 714, 715, 172 S.E.2d 384, 385 (1970). What is clear, however, is that the Court’s decision in Browne is no longer valid as pertains to this issue, in light of the 2015 amendments to West Virginia Code § 3-5-7.
Petitioner argues alternatively that West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 is inapplicable to a certificate nomination candidate because such candidacy is governed exclusively by West Virginia Code § 3-5-23, which requires no such certificate of announcement and mandates that' upon filing of the certificate of nomination, a candidate “shall” be placed on the ballot. W. Va. Code § 3-5-23(d). The Court, however, cannot countenance such a myopic view of our election code. This Court has made clear that
[statutes which relate to the same persons or things, or to the same class of persons or things, or statutes which have a common purpose will be regarded in pan materia to assure’ recognition and implementation of the legislative intent. Accordingly, a court should not limit its consideration to any single part, provision, section, sentence, phrase or word, but rather review the act or statute in its entirety to ascertain legislative intent properly.
Syl. Pt. 5, Fruehauf Corp. v. Huntington Moving & Storage Co., 159 W.Va. 14, 217 S.E.2d 907 (1975). Certainly our state election code presents a comprehensive “code of laws for. the establishment, administration and regulation of elections and election procedures in the state of West Virginia.” W. Va. Code § 3-1-1 (1963).
• Petitioner provides no support for the notion that statutes purporting to have a broad reach become completely inoperable when more specific statutes delineate additional requirements specifically applicable to certain individuals or processes. West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 contains no exclusivity language, nor is there anything inherently inconsistent with requiring a candidate to file both a certificate of announcement pursuant to West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 and a nomination certificate containing all of the required signatures and representations- required by West Virginia Code § 3-5-23. As stated in Browne, the certificate of announcement serves to “ensure the orderly administration of ... elections and to provide notice to the electorate of the identity of candidates[.]” 197 W.Va. at 614, 476 S.E.2d at 561. Petitioner offers no reason why such goals [739]*739should be rendered inapplicable to certificate nomination candidates.
Nonetheless, .petitioner highlights a purported “conflict” in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 and § 3-5-23 in support of his suggestion that he is not required to complete the certificate of announcement. The certificate of announcement requires a candidate to identify, among other housekeeping matters, the date of the election, the office sought, the district, the candidate’s legal name, county of residence, and address. W. Va. Code § 3-5-7(d)(1) through (5). Subsection (d)(6), however, requires a candidate in a partisan election to identify his or her political party and swear, under oath, that the candidate is a member of and affiliated with that political party and has not been registered as a voter affiliated with any other party for the preceding sixty days. W. Va. Code § 3-5-7(d)(6). West Virginia Code § 3-5-23(d) provides merely, however, that the nomination certificate “may” designate a party name, device or emblem. In spite of petitioner’s insistence to the contrary, we perceive no appreciable conflict in these provisions, much less one which would render the provisions of West Virginia Code § 3-5-7(d)(6) wholly inapplicable to a nomination certificate candidate.10
The certificate of announcement described in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 (and in fact the entire statute) pertains to the candidate himself. The certificate seeks information which identifies the candidate, the office for which the candidate is running, and information designed to ensure the candidate-is a proper one for the office he or she seeks. The Legislature has made clear in enacting the requirements of West Virginia Code § 3-6-7(d)(6) that voters are entitled to know with which political party, if any, a candidate is affiliated and that the candidate has not been otherwise affiliated in the preceding sixty days. The substantial ends of these disclosures is clear: voters are entitled to know the party or principles for which a candidate stands, to the extent a candidate has so affiliated himself or herself, such that they can make a knowledgeable decision in easting their votes. This statute seeks to prevent candidates from engaging in chicanery regarding their political affiliations, if any, designed to inure entirely to their individual political benefit and mislead the electorate. See Lippitt v. Cipollone, 337 F.Supp. 1405, 1406 (N.D. Ohio 1971) (upholding similar requirements to preclude candidates from “altering their political party affiliations for opportunistic reasons.”).
The provisions of West Virginia Code § 3-5-23, however, are geared toward ascertaining information about the “groups of citizens” who purport to by-pass the primary election and nominate a candidate by certificate. While the certificate itself is required to be filed by the candidate, the provisions of West Virginia Code §■ 3-5-23 deal virtually exclusively with the qualifications of the citizens who seek to nominate the candidate and the certificate by which they seek to do so. Subsection (b) governs the credentialing required of those who solicit or canvass voter signatures on the nomination certificate. Sub[740]*740section (c) details the criteria for becoming a signator of the nomination certificate and the number-of such signator’s required. Subsections (e) and (f) outline the duties of the Secretary of State to investigate the “validity of the certificates and the signatures thereon” and any penalties for violation of the statute. Subsection (d), which petitioner suggests “conflicts” with the requirements of a candidate to aver his or her registered party affiliation provides simply that the group of citizens which seeks to nominate a candidate “may” designate a name or emblem for themselves. It does not speak to the registered party affiliation, if any, of the candidate. :
Petitioner offers absolutely no argument or rationale before this Court as to why requiring the certificate of announcement delineated in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 of certificate nomination candidates under West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 is impractical, impossible, or inequitable. Indeed he likely cannot inasmuch as, despite his insistence that he was not required to complete a certificate of announcement, it was he who took it upon himself to - file one, albeit incomplete and untimely. Any inefficaeies in requiring nomination certificate candidates to complete the form are not only immaterial to our application of the statute as drafted by the Legislature,. but merely theoretical.11 In fact, we note that the certificate of announcement itself as promulgated by the Secretary of State appears to expressly contemplate execution by certificate nomination candidates who effectively by-pass the primary election. The Secretary of State’s Official Form C-l entitled “Candidate’s Certificate of Announcement for 2016 Partisan Elections” requests the candidate to indicate the “Date of Election” and requests the candidate to “Check one” of the following: primary, general, or unexpired term. Should the form be applicable only to those candidates participating in the primary election, there would be no need to make an allowance for a candidate to check only “general” election, unless that candidate may by-pass the primary and ran only in the general election as nomination certificate candidates do.
• The critical importance of the frank disclosure óf a candidate’s party affiliation is well-illustrated in the case at bar. As indicated above, petitioner is a registered Democrat, yet seeks to run by nomination certificate as an “independent.” Although this term is commonly used to refer to individuals who eschew party affiliation, West Virginia does not recognize an official designation of “Independent.” Rather, those who are “unaffiliated” are registered as such.12 To ran as unaffiliated or “independent,” petitioner' may not merely declare himself “independent” or lacking in party affiliation; he must change his registration to reflect accordingly. West Virginia Code § 3-5-7(d)(6) requires that he declai'e his party affiliation, if any, and aver that he has not otherwise been affiliated in the 60 days preceding the filing. This Court has observed that such requirements “promote political stability, preserve party integrity .,. and prevent voter confusion.” State ex rel. Billings v. City of Point Pleasant, 194 W.Va. 301, 307, 460 S.E.2d 436, 442 (1995); [741]*741see also Bendinger v. Ogilvie, 335 F.Supp. 572, 575 (N.D. Ill. 1971) (noting that without such requirements “party swapping and changing might become so prevalent that the average political party could no longer function properly”).
However, upon filing his certificate of announcement—six months late—petitioner failed or refused to identify his political party, thereby wholly usurping the paramount purpose of the nomination certificate. On the nomination certificate and in sworn testimony, petitioner purported to identify as having no party affiliation or “independent,” all while maintaining his registered Democrat status. Simply put, petitioner is a registered Democrat and any attempt to otherwise identify himself or “disaffiliate” with the Democratic party can only be accomplished by changing his registration; to permit otherwise would perpetrate a fraud on the -electorate. As we have previously stated, “the State’s interests in preserving the integrity of the political process.... are put at risk by candidates who skip from one party to another just prior to an election campaign to take advantage of a political opportunity.” Billings, 194 W.Va. at 308, 460 S.E.2d at 443. If “skipping” from party to party to take advantage of a political opportunity puts the State’s election interests at risk, it is fairly inarguable that allowing a candidate to masquerade as something he is not makes an utter mockery of those interests.
The statute as currently, constituted, requiring all candidates to file'a certificate of announcement in January, appears to reflect a Legislative intent that voters and candidates should know at the outset who is running for elected office. Certificate nomination candidates then obviously have until August 1—an additional approximate six months—to collect the signatures necessary to secure their nomination. This prevents certificate nomination candidates from first emerging near the end of the election season to the surprise of an unwitting recognized political party candidate.
We therefore hold that West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 requires any person who is eligible and seeks to hold an office or political party position to be filled by election in-any primary or general election to file a certificate of announcement declaring his or her candidacy for the nomination or election to the office. Accordingly, candidates who seek to hold an office or political party position pursuant to West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 must complete a certificate of announcement in accordance with the provisions of West Virginia Code § 3-5-7. It is undisputed that petitioner filed his certificate of announcement six months late and that when he did so, his failure to state his political party made his untimely filing also incomplete. Therefore, we conclude that the circuit court committed no reversible error in disallowing his candidacy.
B. Certificate Nomination Candidacies by Recognized Political Party Members
Our above holding notwithstanding, we turn now to petitioner’s argument that the circuit court erred in finding that, as a registered Democrat, the certificate nomination process contained in West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 was not available to him. Although effectively unnecessary to the resolution of this matter given our above holding, the Court chooses to consider this properly raised issue given its importance. See generally Syl. Pt. 1, Israel by Israel v. West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Comm’n, 182 W.Va. 454, 388 S.E.2d 480 (1989) (permitting consideration of issues presenting “sufficient collateral consequences” resulting from failure to address “questions of great public interest”). As noted above, the circuit court found that-the certificate nomination process is available only to third-party or independent candidates, rather than individuals affiliated with a recognized political party13 who neglect or [742]*742refuse to participate in the primary process- or seek nomination by the executive committee of them party or convention.14
.Without question, this Court has historically recognized West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 as “providing the method for ballot access for third-party and independent party candidates.” Write-In Pritt Campaign v. Hechler, 191 W.Va. 677, 681, 447 S.E.2d 612, 616 (1994) (emphasis added). Moreover, in Manchin, 165 W.Va. at 222, 270 S.E.2d at 644, this Court stated that the statute “constitute[s] a method for third-party or independent candidates to gain access to the general election ballot.... [and] that the petition process serves as the functional equivalent of a primary election.” (emphasis added).'Notably, the West Virginia Secretary of State’s official-credentialing form and nomination petition expressly state that they are for “independent” or “minor party” candidates.15 There is nothing on these forms remotely suggesting this process is for use by individuals with recognized political party affiliation.
The language of West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 presents some ambiguity in that it does not expressly forbid a member of a recognized political party from becoming a certificate nomination candidate. However, the language of the statute plainly suggests that it< is a mechanism by which only unaffiliated or minor party candidates may enter the election process. In fact, the statute begins with the statement that “[g]roups of citizens having no party organization may nominate candidates who are not already candidates in the primary election for public office,...” The use of the phrases “no party organization” and reference to candidates “who are not already candidates in the primary election” unquestionably suggests that it is for use by candidates who do not belong to one of the recognized “political part[ies]” in West Virginia. See W. Va. Code § 3-1-8 (1965) (“Any affiliation of voters representing any principle or organization which, at the last preceding general election, polled for its candidate for Governor at least one percent of the total number of votes cast for all candidates for that office in the state, shall be a political party...”). Moreover, subsection (d) permitting the designation “by not more than five words, a brief name of the party which the candidates represent and may adopt a device or emblem to be printed on the official ballot” further suggests that the statute is designed for independent or third party candidates, recognized party candidates having no need to effectively “create” a name, emblem or device to reflect their party.
Having determined that the statute is ambiguous, we turn then to our canons of statutory construction. This Court has repeatedly held that “in the interpretation of a statute, the legislative intention is the controlling factor; and the intention of the legislature is ascertained from the provisions of the statute by the application of sound and well established canons of construction.” State v. Gen. Daniel Morgan Post No. 548, Veterans of Foreign Wars, 144 W.Va, 137, 144, 107 S.E.2d 353, 358 (1959). Critically,
[t]he only mode in which the will of the legislature is spoken is in the statute itself. In the construction of statutes, it is the legislative intent manifested in the statute [743]*743that is important and such intent must be determined primarily from the language of the statute.... and the general rule is that no intent may be imputed to the legislature other than that supported by the face of the statute itself. .... A. statute is to be taken, construed and applied in the form in which it is enacted.
Id. at 144-45, 107 S.E.2d at 358. (emphasis added). As we previously stated herein, “statutes which have common purpose will be regarded in pari materia ... [and] a court should ... review the act or statute in its entirety to ascertain legislative intent properly.” Syl. Pt. 5, in part, Fruehauf Corp., 159 W.Va. 14, 217 S.E.2d 907. As the Supreme Court of Massachusetts observed in reference to similar “imprecisions” in its election laws,
[t]hey simply goad us to undertake a holistic evaluation of the election law regime, and to ascertain as we must “the intent of the statute from all its parts and from the subject matter to which it relates.” DiGiacomo v. Metropolitan Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co., 66 Mass.App.Ct. 343, 346, 847 N.E.2d 1107 (2006). See Sterilite Corp. v. Continental Cas. Co., supra at 839, 494 N.E.2d 1008 (courts “should not accept the literal meaning of the words of a statute without regard for that statute’s purpose and history”). Thus, we turn to the statutory scheme “as a whole,” Wolfe v. Gormally, supra, mindful that “[t]he general purpose of the Legislature in enacting the statutes regulating ... elections was to make a reasonably consistent and harmonious body of law ... which should have the final result of filling the offices required by law.” Thacher v. Secretary of the Commonwealth, 250 Mass. 188, 190, 145 N.E. 256 (1924).
Libertarian Assoc. of Mass. v. Sec’y of the Commonwealth, 462 Mass. 538, 969 N.E.2d 1095, 1105-06 (2012).
In examining the election laws in pari materia, it becomes apparent that it was the Legislature’s intention that West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 was for use exclusively by unaffiliated or minor party candidates. Our election code provides that “[a]t each primary election, the candidate or candidates of each political party”—which quite obviously includes the Democratic party—“shall be nominated by the voters of the different political parties ... [by a] plurality of the votes cast[.]” W. Va. Code § 8-5-;4(a). Quite simply, members of recognized political parties are to be nominated by their party during the primary election. In view of the fact that the primary process is available only to candidates of “each political party,” individuals who do not belong to these parties, as defined by statute, or any minor political party ostensibly have no means of entering "the election process in absence of the provisions of West Virginia Code § 3-5-23.
West Virginia .Code § 3-5-23, therefore, provides for the certificate nomination process and quite understandably reads in terms of groups of citizens who “hav[e] no party organization” and candidates who “are not already candidates in the primary election.” W. Va. Code § 3-5-23(a). The absence of any provision even suggesting that the certificate nomination process is available to a recognized party candidate compels a conclusion to the contrary. As noted above, “no intent may be imputed, to the legislature other than that supported by the face of the statute itself.” Gen. Daniel Morgan Post No. 548, 144 W.Va. at 145, 107 S.E.2d at 358. This Court therefore may not impute the availability of the certificate nomination process to a recognized party candidate inasmuch as the face of the statute quite simply does not support any such usage.
The evolution of the statute lends further credence to our conclusion that it was not designed for, and therefore does not permit, a member of a recognized political party to avail himself of its process. The 1916 version of the statute provided that nomination by certificate was available to “[political parties having national organization,” but having cast less than ten percent of the total vote cast for governor at the general election. W. Va. Code § 3-5-23 (1916) (emphasis added).16
[744]*744Clearly, this language contemplates minor party candidates. Presumably in view of the fact that the statute, as then constructed, did not appear to allow for unaffiliated candidates, the statute was amended in 1941 to make itself available to “groups of citizens having no party organization^]” W. Va. Code § 3-4-29 (1941) (emphasis added).
Not only is this conclusion consistent with the statutory scheme and compelled by our canons of statutory construction, its equity is apparent. In light of our above conclusion that candidates must file a certificate of announcement declaring their party affiliation, to permit recognized political party candidates to then by-pass the primary and use the nomination certificate process allows him or her to then appear on the ballot ostensibly as the candidate of one of the recognized parties. To suggest that this would create voter confusion is putting it mildly. These requirements seek to avoid “political opportunism which is [] likely to threaten the State’s interests”, Billings, 194 W.Va. at 308, 460 S.E.2d at 443, and are necessary to maintain “order, rather than chaos” in the nomination process. Storer v. Brown, 415 U.S. 724, 730, 94 S.Ct. 1274, 39 L.Ed.2d 714 (1974). As in this case, petitioner was a registered Democrat, yet held himself out for purposes of obtaining nomination certificate signatures as “independent.” Accordingly, to allow him to appear on the ballot as “independent” or “unaffiliated” is patently false; to allow him to appear on the ballot as “Democrat” suggests that he is his party’s nominee—also patently false.
These considerations inexorably lead to the conclusion that in order to “maintain[ ] the integrity of different routes to the ballot and [ ] stabiliz[e] the political system,” West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 is available only to unaffiliated or minor party candidates. Polly v. Navarro, 457 So.2d 1140,1143 (Fla. App. 1984). Plainly, this same conclusion was reached by the State’s chief elections official, as evidenced by the form promulgated by her office entitled “Minor Party or Independent Candidate Nomination Petition.”17 We therefore hold that a candidate who is registered and affiliated with a recognized “political party” as defined in West Virginia Code § 3-1-8 may not become a candidate for political office by virtue of the nomination certificate process outlined in West Virginia Code § 3-5-23.
C. Constitutional Issues
Petitioner asserts that he has fully complied with the substantive and procedural requirements of West Virginia Code §§ 3-5-23 and -24, and therefore has the fundamental constitutional right to ballot access through the signature petitions. Petitioner maintains that his right to become a candidate for public office is a fundamental right, [745]*745see Garcelon v. Rutledge, 173 W.Va. 572, 318 S.E.2d 622 (1984), and there is nothing preventing him, a registered Democrat, from running as an unaffiliated candidate pursuant to the provisions set forth in West Virginia Code § 3-5-23. He reminds this Court that candidates’ rights are necessarily tied to voters’ rights. See Bullock v. Carter, 405 U.S. 134, 143, 92 S.Ct. 849, 31 L.Ed.2d 92 (1972). Petitioner states that the circuit court’s decision effectively denied 900 Kanawha County voters the right to nominate and vote in the general election for a candidate of' their choice.
Respondent counters that Petitioner is not being denied access to the general election ballot because of any arbitrary and capricious action by those who supervise the election process and ballot for Kanawha County elections. Rather, Respondent maintains that petitioner should not be included on the general election ballot because he chose to ignore all of the options which would have permitted him to be on the ballot as a representative of the party to which he belongs, the Democratic party. Having decided at the last minute to fling his “Democratic hat into the ring,” petitioner failed to change his registration to unaffiliated at least sixty-one days before filing his certificate of candidacy under West Virginia Code § 3-5-7; he compounded that problem by refusing to fully complete the Candidate’s Certificate of Announcement, leaving his party affiliation blank.
In Anderson v. Celebrezze, 460 U.S. 780, 789, 103 S.Ct. 1564, 75 L.Ed.2d 547 (1983), and Burdick v. Takushi, 504 U.S. 428, 433-34, 112 S.Ct. 2059, 119 L.Ed.2d 245 (1992), the United States Supreme Court established a balancing test to evaluate challenges to state ballot access requirements:
A court considering a challenge to a state election law must weigh the character and magnitude of the asserted injury to the rights protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments that the plaintiff seeks to vindicate against the precise interests put forward by the State as justifi- , cations for the burden imposed by its rule, taking into consideration the extent to which those interests make it necessary to burden the plaintiffs rights.
Burdick, 504 U.S. at 434, 112 S.Ct. 2059 (citation and internal punctuation omitted). The required analysis “depends upon the extent to which a challenged regulation burdens First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.” Id. For “severe” restrictions, the regulation must be “narrowly drawn to advance a state interest of compelling importance.” Id. (quoting Norman v. Reed, 502 U.S. 279, 289, 112 S.Ct. 698, 116 L.Ed.2d 711 (1992)). For “reasonable, nondiscriminatory restrictions,” the “State’s important regulatory interests are generally sufficient to justify the restrictions.” Id. (citation and internal punctuation omitted).
Without question, “[t]he impact of candidate eligibility requirements on voters implicates basic constitutional rights.” Anderson, 460 U.S. at 786, 103 S.Ct. 1564. Nonetheless, “not all restrictions imposed by the States on candidates’ eligibility for the ballot impose constitutionally-suspect burdens on voters’ rights to associate or to choose among candidates.” Id. at 787, 103 S.Ct. 1564. “[A]s a practical matter, there must be a substantial regulation of elections if they are to be fair and honest and if some sort of order, rather than chaos, is to accompany the democratic processes.” Storer, 415 U.S. at 730, 94 S.Ct. 1274.18 In syllabus point [746]*746four of Sowards v. County Comm’n of Lincoln Cty., 196 W.Va. 739, 474 S.E.2d 919 (1996), we held:
The State of West Virginia through its Legislature retains the authority to prescribe reasonable rules for the conduct of elections, reasonable procedures by which candidates may qualify to run for office, and' the manner in which they will be elected.
While he raised a constitutional argument as an assignment of error, petitioner does not set forth constitutional challenges to any specific provision of our State’s election code. In particular, he fails to advance the argument that the January deadline set forth in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 for the filing of a certificate of announcement creates a burden that falls unequally to a candidate seeking ballot access through West Virginia Code § 3-5-23. In the same fashion, petitioner does not assert that the substantive requirements imposed by West Virginia Code § 3-5-7 impose any particular burden on those candidates.19
Instead, petitioner contends that groups of citizens under West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 are free to nominate any qualified citizen and there is no compelling state interest in requiring their candidate to file a certificate of announcement under West Virginia Code § 3-5-7. On this issue, petitioner confuses the right of citizen voters with his own and therein misapprehends the proper test for reasonable, nondiscriminatory regulations on the candidate. See Timmons, 520 U.S. at 358-59, 117 S.Ct. 1364 (noting state need not establish that ballot access restrictions are narrowly tailored and necessary to . promote its interests unless restrictions severely burden rights). Ultimately, the focal point of our inquiry is whether a “reasonably diligent” candidate can be expected to satisfy the requirement. See Storer, 415 U.S. at 742, 94 S.Ct. 1274. In this regard, petitioner has failed to establish or even argue that he could not satisfy the requirements set forth in West Virginia Code § 3-5-7. He simply maintains those requirements are inapplicable to his candidacy. As discussed above, we reject that argument because it goes against the plain language of the statute.
We do not disagree with petitioner’s claim that pursuant to West Virginia Code § 3-5-23, a group of citizens has the right to associate together to express their support for a candidate and select its “standard bearer.” Such a group would have similar constitutional protections as those who are members of a majority political party because the freedom of association protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments includes political organizations.20 Elrod v. [747]*747Burns, 427 U.S. 347, 357, 96 S.Ct. 2673, 49 L.Ed.2d 547 (1976); Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 15, 96 S.Ct. 612, 46 L.Ed.2d 659 (1976). “The right to associate with the political party of one’s choice is an integral part of this basic constitutional freedom.” Kusper v. Pontikes, 414 U.S. 51, 57, 94 S.Ct. 303, 38 L.Ed.2d 260 (1973). The First Amendment protects not only an individual’s right to associate with the political party of his or her choice, it also protects citizens’ right “to band together in promoting among the electorate candidates who espouse their political views.” See California Democratic Party, 530 U.S. at 574, 120 S.Ct. 2402 (2000) (holding California’s proposition which converted State’s primary election from closed to blanket primary in which voters could vote for any candidate regardless of voter’s or candidate’s party affiliation violated political parties’ First Amendment right of association); Clingman v. Beaver, 544 U.S. 581, 600, 125 S.Ct. 2029, 161 L.Ed.2d 920 (2005) (O’Connor, J., concurring) (“constitutional protection of associational rights is especially important in th[e] context [of primary elections] because the aggregation of votes is, in some sense, the essence of the electoral process. To have a meaningful voice in this process, the individual voter must join together with like-minded others at the polls. And the choice of who will participate in selecting a party’s candidate obviously plays a critical role in determining both the party’s message and its prospects of success in the electoral contest.”).
It does not follow, though, that a third party or unaffiliated group of citizens who nominates a candidate pursuant to the provisions set forth in West Virginia Code § 3-5-23 is absolutely entitled to have its nominee appear on the ballot. See Libertarian Party of New Hampshire v. Gardner, 759 F.Supp.2d 215, 225 (D.N.H. 2010), aff'd, 638 F.3d 6 (1st Cir. 2011) (holding right to nominate candidate does not translate into right to control whose name appears on election ballot). A particular candidate might be ineligible for office, unwilling to serve, or, as here, fail to comply with the State election law, “It seems to us that limiting the choice of candidates to those who have complied with state election law requirements is the prototypical example of a regulation that, while it affects the right to vote, is eminently reasonable.” Burdick, 504 U.S. at 440 n.10, 112 S.Ct. 2059.
Accordingly, we agree with respondent that this is not a ballot access case. As discussed more fully above, petitioner, a registered Democrat, had the opportunity to seek ballot access through the provisions of West Virginia Code 3-5-7 but simply failed to do so.
IV. CONCLUSION
For the reasons1' stated herein, we therefore' affirm' the circuit court’s August 18, 2016, order granting respondent’s amended petition for writ of quo warranto, disallowing petitioner’s candidacy for the office of Kana-wha County Clerk, in the November, 2016 general election.
Affirmed.
. JUSTICE DAVIS dissents and reserves the right to file a separate opinion.