If success can be measured in votes, Metro King County Council member Bob Ferguson experienced instant success in the general election.
As of Wednesday morning, The Enterprise’s deadline, the incumbent held a wide lead over newcomer Steven Pyeatt for District 1. Results from the Nov. 8 general election show Ferguson with 73.76 percent of votes and Pyeatt with 25.88 percent of votes.
“I think with 73 percent, that is obviously more than one could realistically hope for,” Ferguson said Tuesday evening. “We felt confident we would win by a decent margin but nobody could have predicted 73 percent.”
The votes indicate support from not only Democrats, but Republicans and Independents, said Ferguson, who currently serves District 2 and was celebrating victory at a coffee shop in Seattle’s Maple Leaf neighborhood.
The general election was a little more “comfortable” than the primary, he said, when he narrowly defeated Metro King County Council member Carolyn Edmonds, who currently serves District 1— an unusual race between two Democrat incumbents.
“It is a nice change of pace for sure, not as much suspense,” Ferguson said. “But I could do without that.”
Ferguson, 40, has served District 2 on the County Council for two years. A Seattle resident, he practiced law before running for office and unseating 20-year incumbent and Council chair Cynthia Sullivan by about 480 votes.
After the primary election, Ferguson said his campaign fund was depleted and he therefore did not distribute a mailer for the general election. It has been a long campaign, Ferguson said, after he starting his grassroots doorbelling campaign on Jan. 15.
“It is nice to have the support of such a huge district,” Ferguson said. “Clearly we are all supporting the campaign and I look forward to bringing the district together.”
Pyeatt, who attended a Republican party celebration on Tuesday evening, said he expected to trail Ferguson with early numbers. He said he campaigned “pretty hard” after the primary election and anticipated earning a large percentage of votes from Bothell, Woodinville, Lake Forest Park and Kenmore.
Pyeatt, 47, was born and reared in Shoreline and currently resides in Bothell. He owns a Web hosting company, has been involved in property management and development, and officiates football games.
“We have a lot of respect for one another and were on a friendly basis before,” Pyeatt said about Ferguson. “That has been reinforced even more.”
Ferguson likely took the lead, Pyeatt said, due to name recognition. Pyeatt hopes to run for office in the future, although he said he will not likely run for King County Council again.
“I got in the race to run against Carolyn and that was our number one goal,” Pyeatt said, “to remove her from office and we did that.”
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