Final tallies in the Aug. 4 primary election show challenger Katie Haven holding on to a microscopic lead over incumbent Andy Hover in the race for the District 2 seat on the Okanogan County Board of Commissioners.
As of Monday (Aug. 17), when the Okanogan County Auditor’s Office released its final vote count, the District 2 contenders were in a virtual tie. Haven, a Democrat, drew 2,616 votes (50.1%) while Hover, a Republican, tallied 2,586 (49.5%). There were also a handful of write-in votes.
Meanwhile, incumbent Chris Branch maintained his lead over challenger Shauna Beeman in the race for the District 1 seat on the Okanogan County Board of Commissioners. Branch, who does not declare a party affiliation, drew 2,013 votes (56.4%) to Republican Beeman’s 1,530 (42.9%). There were also a few write-on votes in that contest.
In the primary, only residents of District 2 (which includes the Methow Valley) voted for either Hover or Haven, while only residents of District 1 voted for either Branch or Beeman. All of the candidates advance to the November general election, where they will compete for countywide votes to win their respective positions.
First-term incumbent 12th Legislative District Rep. Keith Goehner (R-Dryden) claimed a substantial districtwide lead over Adrianne Moore, a Winthrop resident who is running as a Democrat, for the Position 1 seat. Goehner was drawing 65% of the votes (32,073) in District 12, which includes Okanogan, Grant, Chelan and Douglas counties, while Moore was drawing 35.2% (17,431). However, the race was much closer in Okanogan County, where Moore actually closed the gap. Goehner tallied 50.9% (3,412) to Moore’s 48.9% (3,275) in final returns. Both candidates will advance to the November general election.
Only incumbent Mike Steele, a Republican, filed for the 12th Legislative District Position 2 seat. Incumbent District 12 Sen. Brad Hawkins was also unchallenged.
In the 4th U.S. Congressional District race, incumbent Dan Newhouse, a Republican, was polling 57.4% (101,205) against five other candidates. In second place was Douglas E. McKinley of Richland (a Democrat), who drew 26.3% (46,297), well ahead of any other candidate. In Okanogan County, McKinley drew 32.5% (4,434) of the vote compared to Newhouse’s 55% (7,647). The top two finishers advance to the general election.
