A Charleston native, Pritt was the first woman to run for governor of West Virginia as a major party candidate. She began her career as a teacher, later serving in the House of Delegates and state Senate. In 1992, she lost the Democratic primary for governor and ran as an independent in the general election. After winning the 1996 Democratic primary, she lost the general election to Republican Cecil Underwood.

Pritt remained politically active, losing the 2000 primary for secretary of state to Joe Manchin. In 2012, she became chair of the Mountain Party and ran for governor in 2016, earning nearly 6% of the vote, the party's highest total.