by Ralph Nichols

Just 21 votes separate 34th Legislative District candidates Mike Heavey and Joe Fitzgibbon after a second day of counting ballots cast in the Aug. 17 primary election.

Fitzgibbon gained more than a hundred votes in the updated totals released by King County Elections on Wednesday afternoon (Aug. 18) to virtually erase Heavey’s slim election-night lead.

But whoever emerges as winner in this neck-in-neck race will walk away with little more than bragging rights. As the clear front runners, Heavy and Fitzgibbon, both Democrats, will advance beyond the top-two primary and face each other in the Nov. 2 general election.

Ballots cast by 27.49 percent of voters in the 34th Legislative District have been counted. Unreported is how many of its 75,415 registered voters mailed in ballots.

Heavey now has 33.43 percent of the vote, with Fitzgibbon at 33.32 percent. Independent Geoffrey “Mac” McElroy is at 18.47 percent, and Democrat Marcee Stone has 14.27 percent.

The two finalists seek to replace Sharon Nelson as state representative from Position 2. Nelson is unopposed in her move to the Senate, where she will replace former Sen. Joe McDermott. He easily won his contest for the King County Council and will face Diana Toledo in November.

Reached Wednesday morning (Aug. 18) by The B-Town Blog, Heavey reflected on his campaign that now has seven more weeks to go, noting, “I’ve been working since six months ago. There’s no rest for the weary.

“I’m very positive and I’m really humbled by all the support I got. It wasn’t a fluke. I did a lot of hard work from door belling to phone banking to visibility. It paid off.”

Fitzgibbon said “it’s just really gratifying to see all the hard work that we put in during the last five months paid off, and that our message has resonated with the voters of the district. I wouldn’t be surprised if I moved into the lead in the next day or so.”

Fitzgibbon has been a legislative assistant to Rep. Nelson, and also a King County Council legislative aide. He is chairman of the Burien Planning Commission, and was a member of the Burien Shoreline Advisory Committee.

Heavey is director of Outreach and Constituent Relations for the King County Council, focusing on public safety, crime and youth violence. Previously he worked at Expedia.com in fraud and identity theft prevention.

Despite their apparent similar positions on major issues that will confront the next Legislature, both say voters will have a clear choice.

“I think things look very good. People have known the Heavey name for years, and I have only gotten my name out in the last few months. If we keep doing what we’re doing, I’ll be in a strong position.

“Mike’s a good guy and has been working hard, but one of the big differences is that I have a track record of service to our communities. I’ve demonstrated a stronger grasp of the issues, a better grasp of what’s going on in state government for our communities.

“On most big issues, Mike and I have had similar positions. We differ on a matter of style. I hope that will come out in the fall campaign.”

Heavey:

“I think the voters will have a clear choice come November. It will be my job to articulate those differences and it will be up to the voters to decide who they want to represent them in Olympia.

“On paper and in personality, there are some striking differences between us. I’m confident that at the end of the day, the voters will make that decision.

“The biggest issue is the state budget. The question is, do the residents of the 34th District want someone acting in the Legislature on behalf of all the citizens of the state, or acting for only a select few?”

Neither McElroy nor the Stone campaign returned calls from The B-Town Blog for comment.

King County Elections posted its “early returns” Tuesday night (Aug. 17) around 8pm, and with between 22 – 24% of the mail-in ballots counted, it looks like a neck and neck race between Mike Heavey and Joe Fitzgibbon (32.8%) for 34th Dist. State Rep. Pos. #2, and Joe McDermott (59.3%) and Diana Toledo (19.97%) for King County Council, Dist. #8.

Keep in mind that these are preliminary results, and the final tally won’t be released until Sept. 1st.

STATE REP. DISTRICT No. 34 – POSITION 2:

Joe Fitzgibbon

Prefers Democratic Party

5,065

32.80%

Mike Heavey

Prefers Democratic Party

5,185

33.58%

Geoffrey Mac McElroy

Prefers Independent Party

2,910

18.84%

Marcee Stone

Prefers Democratic Party

2,191

14.19%

Write-in

91

0.59%

In the King County Council, Dist. #8 race, Joe McDermott is at 59.3% and former King County employee Diana Toledo is at nearly 20%. Normandy Park’s Shawn McEvoy is at 13%.

METROPOLITAN KING COUNTY COUNCIL DISTRICT NO. 8:

Ballots Cast/Registered Voters: *

23,990

/

109,557

21.90%

County Council District No. 8 Unexpired 1-year Term

Diana Toledo

4,182

19.97%

Tim Fahey

1,481

7.07%

Joe McDermott

12,421

59.30%

Shawn McEvoy

2,732

13.04%

Write-in

129

0.62%

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT NO. 7

Ballots Cast/Registered Voters: *

90053

/

419100

21.49%

United States Representative Congressional District No. 7

Bob Jeffers-Schroder

Prefers Independent – No Party

5624

6.75%

Bill Hoffman

Prefers Democratic Party

3598

4.32%

Jim McDermott

Prefers Democratic Party

64258

77.16%

Scott Sizemore

Prefers Democratic Party

2034

2.44%

Don Rivers

Prefers Democratic Party

2814

3.38%

S. Sutherland

States No Party Preference

3150

3.78%

Write-in

1803

2.16%

Results can change of course depending on which areas get counted when, and we’ll be posting updates as they are released by the county.

In other interesting races (at least to us), here are some early returns:

United States Senator:

• Sen. Patty Murray: 140,192 • 57.98%
• Dino Rossi: 68,501 • 28.33%
• Goodspaceguy: 707 • 0.29%

United States Representative Congressional District No. 7 :

• Bill Hoffman*: 3,598 • 4.32%
• Jim McDermott: 64,258 • 77.16%

* We went to West Seattle High School with Bill Hoffman; note to Bill: next time, choose a weaker opponent!

If you forgot to mail your ballot in, you can still drop it off until midnight tonight at the Riverton Heights Post Office (located at 15250 32nd Avenue South Seatac, WA 98188-9996 – (206) 241-7061).

by Ralph Nichols

Voters in Burien, Normandy Park and North Highline will help decide the only two contested races in the Highline area on the Aug.17 primary election ballot.

Ballots must be postmarked by next Tuesday, Aug. 17, or deposited in a King County Elections ballot drop-box by 8 p.m. that day.

There are no contested legislative district or local primary races in Des Moines.

A contest that has gained high-profile status is the race for the King County Council seat from District 8, which includes Burien, Normandy Park and North Highline.

The eventual winner in November will complete the unexpired term, with one year remaining, which was vacated by Dow Constantine after his election last fall as King County Executive.

And that outcome, depending on who is elected, may significantly alter the complexion of the county council.

Constantine’s replacement, former Seattle City Councilwoman Jan Drago, did not file for election to that post.

The quartet of candidates includes:

• Tim Fahey, a South Park carpenter who is basing his campaign on the need for immediate action to build a new South Park bridge and the failure of the county to replace the structure before it was permanently closed to traffic.
• Normandy Park City Councilman Shawn McEvoy, who has served as mayor and is a small business owner, and who cites his environmental record for protected critical areas in and surrounding the city.
• State Sen. (and Rep.) Joe McDermott of West Seattle, currently representing Burien, White Center, West Seattle, and Vashon and Maury Islands, who is running on his 10 years in the Legislature. He is endorsed by Constantine.
• Diana Toledo of West Seattle, who says her experience from 15 years as a county enforcement coordinator, animal cruelty investigator and licensing supervisor will help her reform and restore financial responsibility to King County government.

Fahey and Toledo both oppose the proposed .02-cent sales tax increase that advocates say is needed to avoid layoffs of sheriff’s deputies, prosecutors and court personnel next year. They maintain that savings can be found within the county budget to avoid those cuts.

McEvoy and McDermott both support the sales tax measure.

In the 34th Legislative District, which includes Burien and North Highline, Democrats Joe Fitzgibbon, Mike Heavy and Marcee Stone, and Independent Geoffrey “Mac” McElroy are running for State Representative, Position 2.

The winner in November will replace state Rep. Sharon Nelson, a Democrat who is running for the State Senate to fill the office vacated by McDermott.

• Fitzgibbon, who is chairman of the Burien Planning Commission, has been a legislative aide to Nelson and also a King county Council legislative aide.
• Heavey currently is director of Outreach and Constituent Relations for the King County Council, and has worked in fraud and identity theft prevention for Expedia.com.
• McElroy owns Mac’s Triangle Pub in White Center. A military veteran, as a member of the White Center Chamber of Commerce he is involved in community development.
• Stone, a legal administration professional who has worked for several law firms, has been a professional actor and a local political activist.

King County Elections released its final certification of the Feb. 9th election, and the ending tally on Proposition 1 – the King County Library System “Library Levy” – results in a 4.18% victory, approving the measure:

KING COUNTY RURAL LIBRARY DISTRICT

Ballots Cast/Registered Voters: 240,852 / 647,133 • 37.22%

Proposition No. 1:

• YES: 124,429 • 52.09%
• NO: 114,435 • 47.91%

The language for Prop. 1, according to the Voter’s Pamphlet:

The Board of Directors of the King County Rural Library District adopted Resolution No. 2009-11 concerning an increase in the District’s regular property tax levy. In order to provide continued funding for the normal operation and maintenance of the King County library system, this proposition would authorize the District to restore regular property tax levy rate to $0.50 per thousand dollars of assessed value for collection in 2011, and to increase the levy in each year thereafter as allowed by chapter 84.55 RCW. Should this proposition be approved?

This means that residents of King County can now expect a small tax increase to help continue funding KCLS libraries.

If you haven’t yet mailed your ballot in, since today (Tuesday, Nov. 3rd) is election day, King County has drop boxes throughout the county that provide voters with a way to securely return ballots without the cost of postage.

The nearest drop box is located at the White Center Library, which is at 11220 16th SW. Drop boxes are open 24 hours a day, there’s no charge, but they close at 8pm tonight (Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3rd).

Of course, you can also just make sure your ballot is postmarked Nov. 3rd by going to the post office before it closes, but that’ll cost you 42 cents; plus, ya never know if your ballot will be lost…

Here’s more info on the ballot drop boxes from King County Elections:

How do I use a ballot drop box?
Carefully follow the instructions on the ballot envelope. Place the ballot in the security envelope, seal all envelopes, sign the outer envelope, and deposit your ballot packet into the box.

How do I know my ballot is secure?
Ballots are collected regularly from each drop box by King County Elections. Two official elections workers will use a chain of custody process to transport all ballots.

Ballot packets are delivered to the Elections facility where they are processed with other returned mail ballots. The signature on every ballot is checked against the voter’s registration file and if it matches, the ballot moves forward.

Here’s the list of nearby drop-off boxes (more are listed at the King County Elections website):

• White Center Library: 11220 16th S.W., Seattle, 98146
• Delridge: 5405 Delridge Way SW, 98106
• Tukwila, King County Elections Headquarters: 9010 East Marginal Way S, 98108
• Des Moines Library: 21620 11th Avenue S., 98198
• Federal Way Library: 848 S 320th St, 98003

If you’ve mailed your ballot in and want to check on its progress, you can do so online by clicking here and following instructions.

[Original Artwork by Danielle Burton.]