LYNNWOOD — Voters here are shaking up City Hall in a big way.
All four incumbents in Tuesday’s election are losing and if the trend holds the City Council will have a majority of new faces next year and its first-ever majority of women members.
Shirley Sutton led Councilman Loren Simmonds, the current council president, 55.2 percent to 44.1 percent in the latest tally of ballots released Thursday.
But Simmonds, who has served on the council since 1999, isn’t ready to concede.
“I’m not throwing in the towel as long as they’re still counting ballots,” he said Thursday.
Shannon Sessions is ahead of first-term Councilman Van AuBuchon by a decisive margin of 57.9 percent to 41.5 percent.
“I’m very pleased with the results of the race. I am very grateful for all the support I received,” said Sessions, a U.S. Air Force veteran and former police department spokeswoman. “I am very proud that our campaign stayed honest, clean, positive and with high integrity.”
AuBuchon said he was “just befuddled” by the results.
“I think the great silent majority has spoken,” he said.
George Hurst led Councilman Sid Roberts by a margin of 52.8 percent to 46.7 percent while Chris Frizzell had a slim 42-vote lead on Councilman Benjamin Goodwin. In percentages, she leads 50.4 percent to 49.2 percent.
Roberts and Goodwin are both seeking a second term.
If Sutton, Sessions and Frizzell win, they’ll join Councilwoman Ruth Ross to give women a majority on the seven-member council.
“I’m a little bit surprised that all the incumbents are losing but I think it reflects some dissatisfaction with how the council has proceeded on the budget and other issues,” said Hurst, a planning commissioner making his first run for office.
He cited a 2014 survey of residents that found widespread concern and distrust with the council. One of the challenges for the next council will be to rebuild the public’s faith in how the city’s business is conducted.
Sutton, who is African American, served on the Lynnwood Diversity Commission and campaigned on the need to bring more diversity to City Hall.
That message resonated with voters, Simmonds said.
“She appears to have been successful in marshalling support from those of many ethnic backgrounds. They rallied behind her,” he said.
He and Roberts said a four-page political newsletter published and distributed to thousands of homes by former Councilman Ted Hikel also swayed voters.
In it Hikel provides his analysis of the races as well as his endorsements. Simmonds and Roberts said it contained misstatements that they couldn’t counter.
“That clearly had an effect on the election,” Roberts said.
Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623; jcornfield@heraldnet.com.
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