Incumbents Mark Ozias of the Clallam County commission appears headed for reelection while Sequim School Board incumbent Jim Stoffer and Clallam Fire District 3 challenger Bill Miano hold leads after the initial tally of general election ballots Tuesday night.
Ozias, a 49-year-old Democrat, is running against challenger Brandon Janisse, a 34-year-old Republican, for the Sequim area seat on the county commission.
The Clallam County Auditor’s Office counted 13,234 ballots Tuesday night, which is about 24.6 percent of the county’s 53,887 registered voters. The next ballot count will be by 4:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 8, and will be certified on Nov. 26.
After Tuesday night’s count, Ozias has 3,385 votes (53.1 percent) to Janisse’s 2,975 votes (46.7 percent).
Stoffer, 59, leads challenger Beth Smithson, 38, in ballots with 3,921 votes (59.5 percent) to Smithon’s 2,667 votes (40.5 percent).
Miano, 48, leads James Barnfather, a 68-year-old two-time fire district commissioner, 3,663 votes to 3,370 (52.1 percent to 47.7) after Tuesday night’s initial count.
In other local contested races:
• Clallam County Fire District 3, which serves residents in both Clallam and Jefferson counties, was easily winning a bid for a renewal of the emergency medical services levy through 2029, with 5,684 yes votes (about 73 percent) of ballots cast. The EMS levy voters renewed for 10 years in 2009 is due to expire in 2020.
• Ann Marie Henninger, 52, of Sequim, has a significant lead over Nate Adkisson, 40, also of Sequim, in ballot counts for the District 1 seat on the Olympic Medical Center commission, one now held by John Beitzel. Henninger has 7,120 votes to Adkisson’s 3,777, a 65-35 lead.
Meanwhile, incumbent Jean Hordyk, 72, of Port Angeles was well ahead in her race against challenger Ted Bowen, 36, of Carlsborg for the OMC District 2 seat, with 7,388 of the 10,624 ballots cast.
• Three of four Sequim City Council races were unopposed while Position 2 incumbent Jennifer States was challenged by a declared write-in candidate. After Tuesday night’s initial results, States was leading in that contest with 1,048 votes (84.1 percent) while write-in candidate Sarah W. Kincaid had 198 votes (15.9 percent).
• J. Mike Rudd, 64, was ahead of incumbent Jan L. Richardson in the count of ballots for the Park and Recreation District 1, Position 5 — formerly the Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center (SARC). Rudd had 3,347 of ballots cast, about 57.8 percent, to Richardson’s 2,437 votes.
• In Charter Review Commission races, in which voters select five per district from a field of candidates:
David Lotzgesell (14.3 percent), Jim Stoffer (12.2), Ted Miller (12.0), Sue Erzen (11.9) and Candace Pratt (11.4) had early leads in District 1;
Ron Cameron (11.6 percent), Norma E. Turner (9.5), Patti Morris (8.1), Mary Doherty (8.1) and Wendy Clark Getzin (7.3) had early leads in District 2;
In District 3, Rod Fleck (12.4 percent), Andrew T. May (11.1), Brian Hunter (10.3) and Joseph Murray (9.1) had leads, with Don Corson and Therese Stokan (both at 8.85) tied for fifth.
In statewide general election results:
• Initiative 976, which would limit annual license fees for vehicles weighing under 10,000 pounds at $30 (except voter-approved charges), was getting voter approval statewide in early counts Tuesday evening, getting 525,813 yes votes (about 55 percent).
In Clallam County, voters were approving the initiative with 6,694 votes (52 percent) to 6,150 (48 percent).
• Referendum 88, regarding Initiative 1000 defining affirmative action, was being rejected by voters by a slight margin (51.2-48.8). A rejection of the referendum would block the initiative from going into effect, thereby continuing to restrict the state from implementing certain affirmative action policies in public employment, education and contracting.
In Clallam County, voters were rejecting the referendum 54-46 percent
