Incumbent Everett, Snohomish mayors seem headed for November

EVERETT — After first count, incumbent mayors in both Everett and Snohomish were well positioned to head to the Nov. 2 general election.

And in Lynnwood, three City Council members in the mayoral race were within a few hundred votes of each other, but Christine Frizzell was well in the lead.

As of Tuesday evening, the number of ballots returned for all three cities was below 25% — a relatively normal turnout for a primary election without gubernatorial or presidential races. In 2019, just under a quarter of registered voters returned their ballots.

Here’s a look at the results of the first round of ballot-counting. The next update of election results will be posted Wednesday.

Snohomish County Auditor Garth Fell reported that there were about 14,000 ballots left to count as of Tuesday evening. That total will change with the addition of ballots collected from drop boxes Tuesday and received in the mail Wednesday.

Everett

Mayor Cassie Franklin seemed to be well on her way to re-election with just over 76% of the vote.

In a statement, Franklin said she is “grateful to have such broad support from the community and looks forward to the work ahead.”

She will likely face Steve Oss, who had 19% as of Tuesday, in the November general election. Ron Wittock, the third candidate on the primary ballot, announced in June he was not campaigning and would support Oss.

“I have spent zero money on any advertising so I don’t have the name recognition,” Oss said. “I have to get them to understand who I am, why I’m running and that I do have the ability to do what needs to be done here in Everett.”

Lynnwood

Frizzell, George Hurst and Jim Smith are City Council colleagues-turned-competitors in Lynnwood’s mayoral race. The three contestants are seeking to fill Mayor Nicola Smith’s position following her decision to retire after serving eight years.

Frizzell and Smith will likely advance to the general election. Frizzell had 45% of the vote, with Smith trailing at 31% and Hurst at 23%.

Just over 300 votes were holding Hurst back from passing Smith, with more ballots to be counted in the coming days.

Frizzell received the support of the current mayor, an important endorsement. She was also supported by other mayors, including Everett Mayor Franklin.

“It shows that we’re collaborative people and that we want to work on issues that matter for all of south Snohomish County, not just our individual cities,” Frizzell said Tuesday evening. “We can be better together.”

Throughout his campaign, Smith cited his nearly 25 years of experience on the City Council as qualification for mayor.

“I want to offer my congratulations for a well-fought race by both Chris and George,” Smith said. “I thought we had a real civil campaign run.”

The new Lynnwood mayor will take over as the city confronts issues of housing affordability, public safety and a recovering economy.

The city is also expecting the arrival of the Sound Transit Link light rail by 2024, a development that will make the Lynnwood Transit Center one of the busiest centers in the region.

Hurst could not be reached for comment.

Snohomish

With a close margin, it looked like incumbent Snohomish Mayor John Kartak would face City Council President Linda Redmon in the Nov. 2 contest.

As of Tuesday night, Kartak had 42% of the vote, about 160 votes behind Redmon.

Kartak said his campaign is rooted in preserving “small town values,” while Redmon has pledged to expand renewable energy sources and strengthen partnerships with nonprofits to address homelessness.

In contrast to Kartak’s support of the May 2020 vigilantes that swarmed downtown Snohomish, some armed and others bearing symbols harkening back to the confederacy, Redmon has led conversations in the community about race and equity.

“I am really pleased with the results and have to thank all the people who have supported me and my vision for bringing Snohomish together,” Redmon said in a text.

Sam King promised to create the nation’s first “direct democracy” — in which there is “widespread participation in the decision-making process by the people affected” — but he was falling short with less than 5% of the vote.

The results of the election will be certified by the county canvassing board on Aug. 17.

King and Kartak could not be reached for comment.

Hannah Sheil: hannah.sheil@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3463. Twitter: @thehannahsheil.

Isabella Breda: 425-339-3192; isabella.breda@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @BredaIsabella.

Reporters Ben Watanabe and Jerry Cornfield also contributed to this reporting.

This article has been updated to include interviews with candidates after the print deadline.