Exhibit 31.1



CERTIFICATION

(Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted Pursuant to 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002)



I, Ronald Leon Moore, certify that:



|1. | I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-QSB of Cardinal Bankshares Corporation;
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|2. | Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light
of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
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|3. | Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition,
results of operations and cash flows of the small business issuer as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
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|4. | I am responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a 15(e) and 15d 15(e)) for the small business issuer and
have:
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| | a) | Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under my supervision, to ensure that material information
relating to the small business issuer, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to me by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
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| | b) | Evaluated the effectiveness of the small business issuers disclosures controls and procedures and presented in this report my conclusions about the effectiveness of the
disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this based on such evaluation; and
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| | c) | Disclosed in this report any change in the small business issuers internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the small business issuers most recent
fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is likely to materially affect, the small business issuers internal control over financial reporting; and
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|5. | I have disclosed, based on my most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the small business issuers auditors and the audit committee of small
business issuers board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
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| | a) | All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the
small business issuers ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
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| | b) | Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the small business issuers internal control over financial
reporting.
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|Date: November 10, 2004 |  | /s/ Ronald Leon Moore                                                         
|                        |  | Ronald Leon Moore                                                             
|                        |  | Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer & Acting Chief Financial Officer