Published: Sunday, November 2, 2008
Governor's race results may keep us waiting
When 3.6 million registered voters in Washington state go to bed on election night Tuesday, chances are they won't know who will be the next governor.
That strong possibility -- a reminder of the agonizing wait and controversial outcome in 2004 -- is something state Republican and Democratic leaders can actually agree on.
Not only are both sides expecting a tight race in the rematch between Gov. Chris Gregoire and Republican challenger Dino Rossi, they also know hundreds of thousands of late-arriving ballots will not be counted Tuesday night and the state's largest county has antiquated ballot-counting equipment that will slow down the statewide tabulation.
"If it is at all close, I can't imagine we are going to know on election night," said Matthew Lundh, a state Republican Party spokesman.
"It could be election week, election two weeks, election month."
A wait of several days is "definitely a possibility," said Debra Cairns, a spokeswoman for the Gregoire campaign.
The outcomes of several statewide races and initiatives also could take a while, officials said.
"The fact that we don't expect more than 50 percent of the vote to be counted (Tuesday) certainly brings into question the ability to call any close races," said David Ammons, a spokesman for the state Secretary of State's office.
Another wrinkle is where the ballots come from.
King County, whose voters favored Gregoire in 2004, projects an 85 percent turnout in the general election. However, on election night, county officials estimated it will only be able to count 387,000 of the 941,000 ballots it expects to get back, largely because of its slow ballot-counting technology.
State Elections Director Nick Handy cautioned that voters shouldn't expect to know definitive results on election night because King County's results will come in slower than the rest of the state.
"Because King is such a dominate player in the governor's race, we're concerned that the Tuesday night results will not necessarily be reflected in the final results," he said. "We want to encourage voters to be patient and understand only about half the ballots will be tabulated on election night and that there will be many more ballots coming in later."
Paul Elvig, a former Snohomish County Republican Party chairman, was a plaintiff in a lawsuit four years ago aimed at overturning Gregoire's 133-vote win. He hopes the race doesn't drag out like last time when a judge ruled nearly five months after the election in favor of Gregoire.
He also is prepared for another wait.
"I believe that the governor's race will be hanging out there for a while," he said. "I would rather see accurate results than speedy ones."
So, assuming a result is not known Tuesday night, what will people be doing at election night parties?
"What you celebrate on Tuesday night is you celebrate the election is over," Elvig said. "So many people are sick and tired of it. I have heard more comments from people this year than I have heard in the past."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or e-mail stevick@heraldnet.com.
That strong possibility -- a reminder of the agonizing wait and controversial outcome in 2004 -- is something state Republican and Democratic leaders can actually agree on.
Not only are both sides expecting a tight race in the rematch between Gov. Chris Gregoire and Republican challenger Dino Rossi, they also know hundreds of thousands of late-arriving ballots will not be counted Tuesday night and the state's largest county has antiquated ballot-counting equipment that will slow down the statewide tabulation.
"If it is at all close, I can't imagine we are going to know on election night," said Matthew Lundh, a state Republican Party spokesman.
"It could be election week, election two weeks, election month."
A wait of several days is "definitely a possibility," said Debra Cairns, a spokeswoman for the Gregoire campaign.
The outcomes of several statewide races and initiatives also could take a while, officials said.
"The fact that we don't expect more than 50 percent of the vote to be counted (Tuesday) certainly brings into question the ability to call any close races," said David Ammons, a spokesman for the state Secretary of State's office.
Another wrinkle is where the ballots come from.
King County, whose voters favored Gregoire in 2004, projects an 85 percent turnout in the general election. However, on election night, county officials estimated it will only be able to count 387,000 of the 941,000 ballots it expects to get back, largely because of its slow ballot-counting technology.
State Elections Director Nick Handy cautioned that voters shouldn't expect to know definitive results on election night because King County's results will come in slower than the rest of the state.
"Because King is such a dominate player in the governor's race, we're concerned that the Tuesday night results will not necessarily be reflected in the final results," he said. "We want to encourage voters to be patient and understand only about half the ballots will be tabulated on election night and that there will be many more ballots coming in later."
Paul Elvig, a former Snohomish County Republican Party chairman, was a plaintiff in a lawsuit four years ago aimed at overturning Gregoire's 133-vote win. He hopes the race doesn't drag out like last time when a judge ruled nearly five months after the election in favor of Gregoire.
He also is prepared for another wait.
"I believe that the governor's race will be hanging out there for a while," he said. "I would rather see accurate results than speedy ones."
So, assuming a result is not known Tuesday night, what will people be doing at election night parties?
"What you celebrate on Tuesday night is you celebrate the election is over," Elvig said. "So many people are sick and tired of it. I have heard more comments from people this year than I have heard in the past."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or e-mail stevick@heraldnet.com.
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