EVERETT — When results showed up on election night, Brian Sullivan couldn’t hide his dismay.
The Democrat, who has spent most of his adult life in politics, was running for a third term on the Snohomish County Council. And on Nov. 3 he was trailing first-time political candidate Greg Tisdel by 98 votes. Throughout the week, they took turns swapping the lead.
“It took the wind out of my sails for a few days, that’s for sure,” Sullivan said this week.
By Thursday, Sullivan was on top by 474 votes. With just 419 votes left to count in the race, that puts Sullivan on track to keep his job.
Tisdel admitted defeat. A Democrat with close ties to the local business community, he was competing for the County Council’s District 2 seat, representing an area that stretches almost from Picnic Point to Kayak Point, including Everett, Tulalip, Mukilteo and nearby unincorporated areas.
“It’s obvious with the amount of votes left, it’s his job,” Tisdel said. “I intend to hopefully work with him on things in the future because I’m not going anywhere and he’s the elected person and there’s a lot of big issues that hopefully he paid attention to and hopefully will engage himself in.”
Sullivan’s lead of more than 2 percent also puts the race out of recount range. Washington state law requires a machine recount when the difference between the top two candidates is less than 2,000 votes, but also less than 0.5 percent of the total votes received.
One Lynnwood City Council race is headed for a recount.
As of Thursday afternoon, incumbent Benjamin Goodwin led challenger Chris Frizzell by only 14 votes. With more than 5,300 votes counted, that put the contenders for Council Position 5 within a half-percent of a tie. Goodwin, a 38-year-old corporate trainer, had 49.9 percent of the vote, while Frizzell, a 56-year-old accountant, had 49.6 percent.
There were 155 votes left to count in the race, elections manager Garth Fell said.
Three of four Lynnwood City Council members up for re-election this fall are losing to challengers: Loren Simmonds, Sid Roberts and Van AuBuchon.
The Snohomish County Auditor’s Office plans to certify results in all races Nov. 24.
Sullivan said he’s proud to have overcome a significant fundraising disadvantage without resorting to negative campaigning. Tisdel attracted more than $200,000 in direct donations, more than double Sullivan’s total. That’s without counting money raised by political action committees.
Sullivan said he’s already started reaching out to Tisdel supporters.
“I’m proud to say I ran a clean, intelligent campaign,” he said.
The 57-year-old has run for office a dozen times — and lost only once, in the 1999 county treasurer’s race. He has served on the Mukilteo City Council, as Mukilteo’s mayor and later in the state House of Representatives. Sullivan moved to Everett earlier this year from Mukilteo. He also runs a restaurant with two partners, Sully’s Pizza and Calzones in Mukilteo’s Old Town.
Tisdel estimated he talked to about 4,400 people while out doorbelling for the election. He hopes Sullivan keeps their concerns in mind.
“It was budget, homelessness, transportation and economic development,” he said. “Those were the top four things, time after time after time.”
Sullivan maintains that he’s been working on those issues all along.
He highlighted his past work to secure grants to transform the former Carnegie Building in downtown Everett into a social service center and temporary housing for people released from jail for nonviolent crimes and in need of help managing mental health problems and addiction.
Sullivan said he’s focused on state- and county-funded road projects, as well as charting a future route for light rail in Everett.
Like most other local leaders, Sullivan believes that Sound Transit light rail must serve Paine Field. He’d also like to see it reach farther north, to the area around Everett Community College, but says funding could come up short for that leg.
“Of course, I support getting light rail to Paine Field as the largest job center in the state,” he said. “So the question is, which one are we going to pick if we’re forced to? I’m still working hard to get both options.”
Sullivan also has ideas for the county budget, but they might put him at odds with some other elected leaders.
Sullivan supports cutting taxes raised for the county’s abandoned $162 million courthouse project — which, in his opinion, is dead until a tax package is put to voters for their approval.
“The only way to revive the courthouse project is to put it on the ballot,” he said.
The tax cut would save the county about $4 million per year and reduce property taxes by about $12.77 on an average-priced home. County Executive John Lovick recommended it as part of his proposed 2016 budget. But County Council Chairman Dave Somers, who is preparing to take over as executive after beating Lovick on Nov. 3, doesn’t support that option.
Somers said it would be premature to take that step without county leaders first coming to agreement on replacing the 1967 courthouse building.
As council chairman, Somers is drafting a spending plan scheduled for a vote Nov. 23.
Sullivan and Somers have clashed on an array of issues over the past year. Disagreements involved last year’s budget, pay raises for managers and the abandoned county courthouse project.
Tisdel said the bickering has prevented the county from reaching its goals.
Sullivan, for his part, said that’s all in the past. He’s prepared to solve problems as Somers transitions into the executive’s job.
“I’m a mature, experienced policy maker and lawmaker,” Sullivan said. “I will work with anybody.”
Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.
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