Election officials statewide must now conduct a hand recount of all ballots to determine the winner

Carleen Johnson
The Center Square Washington

It will be early September before it’s known who will face Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler in the general election for state lands commissioner. 

As Washington’s 39 counties certified their primary vote counts on Tuesday, sending totals to the Secretary of State’s Office, only 51 votes separated King County Councilmember Dave Upthegrove, a Democrat, from Republican Sue Kuehl Pederson.

Upthegrove’s razor-thin margin over Kuehl Pederson comes out of 1.9 million total votes, giving him a lead of .002684% for the second-place finish.

Only the top two vote getters advance to the November election regardless of party affiliation.

Election officials statewide must now conduct a hand recount of all ballots to determine the winner.

“Once we certify, we will direct county canvassing boards to begin their manual recount,” said Stuart Holmes, director of elections with the Secretary of State’s Office.

Holmes told The Center Square canvassing boards are required to provide one-day’s notice to each of the candidates when the hand counts are to begin.

“There are deadlines coming up, like with military ballots that have to be out the door by September 21st,” Holmes explained, “and there are printing deadlines and voters pamphlet deadlines that need to be met.”

If the difference between the candidates is less than one half of one percent and also less than 2,000 votes, a recount is required.

In a statewide race or measure, if the difference between the candidates or responses is less than one quarter of one percent and also less than 1,000 vote, then a manual recount is required.

The last statewide primary election that triggered a recount was in 1960 in a race for the Washington Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Herrera Beutler secured the top spot in the lands commissioner race, getting 419,297 votes. Upthegrove got 396,300 votes, and Kuehl Pederson received 396,249 votes.

The contest drew seven contenders in all. Five were Democrats and two were Republicans.

If Kuehl Pederson ends up ahead of Upthegrove following the manual recount, it will be two Republicans facing off in the Nov. 5 general election. 

This report was first published by The Center Square Washington.

---

Also read:

• 
  Area residents share their experience at Kent fundraiser
  Joe Kent, with support from House Speaker Mike Johnson, held a fundraising event in Vancouver to boost his campaign for the 3rd Congressional District.
• 
  Opinion: Winning elections starts with you
  Nancy Churchill shares insights on ballot hygiene and the importance of early voting for registered voters in Washington state.
• 
  House Speaker Mike Johnson ‘very bullish’ on Kent and November
  House Speaker Mike Johnson and Joe Kent gear up for November at a Vancouver fundraiser.
• 
  Opinion: ‘Politics makes strange bedfellows’
  In this column by Clark County Today editor Ken Vance, he takes a look behind the scenes at the Clark County Republican Party’s recent meeting, where Paul Harris was recognized for his state senate run, and the debate over endorsing Dave Reichert for governor continues.
• 
  POLL: Do you believe party unity is more important than strict adherence to conservative principles in the upcoming elections?
  Do you believe party unity is more important than strict adherence to conservative principles in the upcoming elections? Cast your vote in our latest poll!