The race for District 10 state senator has grown even closer.
Janet St. Clair’s lead over Sen. Ron Muzzall is razor thin following the ballot count Wednesday night. St. Clair has 28,678 votes, or 49.99%, while Muzzall has 28,617, or 49.89%. The candidates are just 61 votes apart, which is 0.1% of the vote.
After the first count on election night, the candidates were 0.3% apart in votes.
St. Clair, a Democrat, is a Camano Island resident and the current Island County commissioner. Muzzall, the incumbent, is a Republican and a longtime Oak Harbor resident. The 10th District is made up of Island County and parts of Skagit and Snohomish counties.
The closeness of the race is similar to the election four years ago, when Muzzall faced Helen Price Johnson, a Democrat who was an Island County commissioner at the time. Price Johnson had a slight lead on election night but subsequent counts reduced the margin until Muzzall came out ahead.
The contest between Muzzall and St. Clair was one of the most expensive in the state, with the candidates raising well over $1 million between them; in addition, political groups joined in with their own, often negative advertising about the candidates.
Little changed with the second count of ballots in the other races affecting Whidbey Island.
In the District 1 race, Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon, a Democrat, still has a big lead over challenger Marie Shimada as well as write-in candidate Damian Greene. Bacon, a Democrat, has nearly 66% of the vote.
In District 2, Christina Elliott, a Democrat, is still ahead of Commissioner Jill Johnson, a Republican, although her lead eroded slightly. Elliott has nearly 52% of the vote while Johnson has 48%.
There is good news for the North Whidbey Pool, Park and Recreation District. The property tax levy renewal is now at 61%. The measure requires a 60% supermajority.
The South Whidbey School District’s two ballot measures are passing by a wide margin. Langley’s sales tax for criminal justice scored an impressive 81% voted approval.
