Marysville school officials may be a little less optimistic, while Lynnwood Mayor Mike McKinnon may be a little more optimistic after about 4,500 absentee ballots were counted Wednesday.
McKinnon gained a little ground, but Marysville schools lost a little when the primary election numbers were crunched.
It could take a few days before voters know the fate of the $171 million bond measure to build new schools in Marysville, and who will face off for Lynnwood mayor in the Nov. 8 general election.
Thousands of late-arriving mail ballots were counted Wednesday, but there are about 6,500 more to be counted, and more are expected to trickle in. The count will take time, as each voter signature on vote-by-mail ballots is checked for accuracy.
Marysville school bond backers didn’t get the boost they hoped for on Wednesday.
The gap actually widened slightly from a 58.54 percent yes vote Tuesday night to a 58.36 percent yes vote. School bond measures require a 60 percent supermajority to pass. The vote now stands at 6,644 to 4,741.
“It certainly makes it more of a stretch,” Marysville School District Superintendent Larry Nyland said.
However, late-arriving ballots after a May voted on the same bond package were favorable, and if that trend holds again, the margin could still narrow, Nyland said.
“It would be nice if it makes it by one or two votes, and heartbreaking if it loses by that amount,” he added.
In Lynnwood, McKinnon maintained a sliver of a lead over City Council member Jim Smith in the mayor’s fight to keep his job. Councilman Don Gough slightly widened his slim lead.
After Wednesday’s count, Gough had 1,143 votes, McKinnon 1,075 and Smith 1,064. McKinnon led Smith by just four votes late Tuesday night.
The top two vote-getters will advance to the general election.
If the totals hold, the November election would see a rematch of four years ago, when McKinnon, a councilman for 12 years, defeated Gough.
“That’s what it looks like at this point,” McKinnon said. “But it’s still too close between Jim Smith and myself to know who’s going to be the number two person.”
The race for the second spot in the general election in 2001 was also close, with Gough narrowly edging Smith.
McKinnon said he waited too long to start campaigning this year, noting that Smith and Gough had signs up in the spring. McKinnon said he didn’t put signs up until late August.
“The lesson for me is to start earlier,” he said.
McKinnon said if he and Gough both make the general election, “we start off even and have at it.”
Gough could not be reached for comment.
Wednesday’s count brought the votes counted to just under 67,000. More than 55,000 were mail-in ballots. At least another 5,000 ballots were expected to be counted today, elections manager Carolyn Diepenbrock said.
Ballots likely will be counted through Saturday, she said, with the county required to count votes every day that they receive more than 25. The final count will be posted next Thursday.
In Marysville, among other things, the bond measure would finance construction of a second high school for 1,600 students, renovate Marysville-Pilchuck High School, add a new elementary school and replace Cascade and Liberty elementary schools.
By state law, school bond measures can be placed on the ballot only twice in a calendar year, so if it fails, school officials couldn’t try again until 2006.
Reporter Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446 or stevick@ heraldnet.com.
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