The race for Washington state commissioner of public lands narrowed by a single vote in Lewis County following a recount of the 24,798 ballots cast in the August primary.
Following a manual recount, King County Councilmember and Democratic candidate Dave Upthegrove lost one vote while Democratic state Sen. Kevin Van De Wege gained one vote.
Following the completion of the recount, the Lewis County Auditor’s Office announced Tuesday that one vote during the August primary had been incorrectly adjudicated.
According to the auditor’s office, the ballot had a corrected vote for Van De Wege and a cross-out of Upthegrove. Upon reexamination, the canvassing board determined a voter intended to vote for Van De Wege, though their ballot was tabulated for Upthegrove.
The other candidates in the race did not see their vote total change during the manual recount.
As the recount got underway inside the small office at the Lewis County Courthouse on Aug. 26, representatives from the Upthegrove and Republican Sue Kuehl Pederson campaigns attended to ensure that election officials followed protocol.
Up the road in Thurston County, the auditor’s office also announced Tuesday their canvassing board had completed a manual recount of the county's 88,084.
Neither Upthegrove or Kuehl Pederson saw their vote total change in Thurston County, though one undervote was changed to a vote for Democratic candidate Patrick DePoe.
“I love hand recounts because they validate our tabulation equipment, our processes and our ballot inspection team,” Mary Hall, Thurston County auditor, said in a statement. “No votes changed between candidates, and we had only one vote change from an undervote to a candidate. One ballot out of 88,000 is pretty impressive. I am very proud of my team.”
According to the Thurston County Auditor’s Office, 13 observers watched the recount in person.
The Washington state Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, who previously called it the “closest statewide race” in primary history, certified the election on Wednesday.
Upthegrove will meet Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler in the general election. Herrera Beutler finished on top in the crowded race in which only the top two finishers move on to the general election.
“We are confident our election officials and workers throughout the state’s 39 county election offices administered an accurate and reliable election for all Washingtonians,” Assistant Secretary of State Kevin McMahan previously said in a statement. “The mandatory recount underscores the importance of every vote and reaffirms the commitment of our county election officials to ensuring accurate election results. We ask for everyone’s patience as county election officials administer the manual recount to ensure that the intent of every voter is accurately heard.”
According to initial results from the August primary, just 51 votes, a 0.0064% difference, separated Upthegrove, who currently sits in second place, and Kuehl Pederson, who sits in third place.
Herrera Beutler led both candidates by more than 20,000 votes.
While at a campaign stop in Lewis County in late August, Herrera Beutler said she was preparing to face Upthegrove during the general election.
According to Lewis County Chief Deputy Auditor Tom Stanton, the last county-wide recount occurred in 2014 in the race for Lewis County assessor.
In that race, the initial results from the general election showed that 29 votes separated incumbent Dianne Dorey and challenger Candy Hallom. According to previous reporting by The Chronicle, the recount did not change Dorey’s vote count, though it added six votes for Hallom.
According to the Secretary of State’s Office, the race for commissioner of public lands is the closest in the history of Washington’s primaries, edging out the 252 votes that separated the candidates for superintendent of public instruction in the 1960 primary.
Nearly 41% of registered voters in Washington state submitted ballots in the August primary, a decline over both the 2020 primary and 2022 primary. Ballots for the general election will be mailed to eligible voters by Oct. 18.
The general election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
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