Whatcom election update: Van Werven, Sefzik concede in 42nd District state House race
Three-term Republican state Rep. Luanne Van Werven conceded defeat as she continued to trail Blaine Councilwoman Alicia Rule in their closely contested 42nd Legislative District position 1 race.
Results published Wednesday, Nov. 4, by the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office show that Rule, the Democratic candidate, leads 51% to 49%, a margin of 2,101 votes out of the 90,713 votes that were counted Tuesday night and Wednesday.
Another count is due by 5 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, for the 42nd District, which encompasses northern Bellingham neighborhoods, rural northern Whatcom County and its smaller cities.
Van Werven, who was first elected to the state House in 2014, wrote to supporters in a Facebook post about 6 p.m. Wednesday.
“It looks like the voters have spoken and Alicia Rule is the new representative-elect in the 42nd Legislative District,” Van Werven wrote.
“I will always cherish my six years of service to the constituents of this beautiful community. Finally, a big thank-you to all those who helped in so many ways with my campaign. I couldn’t have done it without you,” Van Werven wrote.
Rule told The Bellingham Herald that Van Werven called her Wednesday night.
“I received a very gracious concession from Representative Van Werven, which I appreciate,” Rule said.
Campaigns for both 42nd District House seats were marked by attack ads paid for by interests outside Whatcom County.
That race was the second most expensive in the state, with $1,465,476 in contributions through Monday, Nov. 2, according to data from the state Pubic Disclosure Commission.
Democratic state Rep. Sharon Shewmake was leading Jennifer Sefzik of Custer by 52% to 48% on Wednesday and has retained her 42nd District position 2 seat.
Sefzik said she called Shewmake to congratulate her Wednesday night and conceded the election in a social media post.
“The demographics of the 42nd District have changed, with thousands of newcomers the last two years,” Sefzik wrote on her campaign’s Facebook page. “It was simply too much to overcome.”
Turnout high
Turnout in Whatcom County was 88% through Thursday morning, tying the record 88% of the county’s registered voters who cast ballots in 2008 when Barrack Obama won the presidency.
There were 743 ballots waiting to be counted Wednesday, the Auditor’s Office said on its website, but more ballots likely would arrive with Thursday’s mail and they will be counted if they are postmarked by 8 p.m. Tuesday.
A steady stream of voters headed to the Whatcom County Courthouse amid breezy winds and persistent rain to cast their ballots in person until about 6 p.m. Tuesday, Auditor Diana Bradrick said.
“Then it really slumped. I think we only had about three people in the Council Chambers at 8 p.m., and several people in the rotunda still voting,” Bradrick told The Herald in an email.
Spontaneous protests were reported in several cities around the nation Tuesday night — including Seattle — when President Trump falsely claimed victory in the presidential race.
But Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Deb Slater and Bellingham Police Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Herald that there were no incidents involving the election in Bellingham or Whatcom County.
A Blaine Police spokesperson also reported no election-related incidents.
In other results released at 5 p.m. Wednesday:
Whatcom County Superior Court
▪ For position 2, Evan Jones was leading James Erb, 51% to 49%.
▪ For position 4, David E. Freeman defeated Jim Nelson, 78% to 22%.
1st Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene, a Kirkland Democrat, defeated Jeffrey Beeler Sr., a Republican from Sultan, in the 1st Congressional District race.
DelBene had 60% of the vote and Beeler had 40%.
That district covers most of Whatcom, Skagit, and Snohomish counties, plus almost one-third of King County.
2nd Congressional District
U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, an Everett Democrat, defeated Timothy S. Hazelo, a Republican from Oak Harbor, in the 2nd Congressional District.
Larsen had 65% of the vote and Hazelo had 34%.
That district covers Bellingham and southwest Whatcom County, plus Island and San Juan counties and western Skagit and Snohomish counties.
40th Legislative District
Washington’s 40th Legislative District covers San Juan County, southern and eastern Bellingham neighborhoods and southern Whatcom County, and northwest Skagit County.
▪ For position 1, incumbent state Rep. Debra Lekanoff, a Democrat from Bow, was unopposed and was elected with 97% of the vote. Write-in candidates had 3%.
▪ Incumbent position 2 state Rep. Alex Ramel, a Democrat from Bellingham, defeated Russ Dzialo, a Republican from Bellingham, by 73% to 27%.
Ramel was appointed in January to finish the term of Jeff Morris, who resigned to take a job in the private sector.
▪ Incumbent state Sen. Liz Lovelett, a Democrat from Anacortes, defeated Charles Carrell, a Republican from Burlington, by 74% to 26%.
Lovelett is seeking her first full four-year term as a state senator. She was appointed in February 2019 to finish the term of Kevin Ranker and won a confirmation election in November 2019.
Public Utility District 1
Christine Grant defeated incumbent James McClure, 59% to 41%.
Grant, a policy consultant and Western Washington University instructor, will be the first woman elected to the board, according to Steve Jilk, PUD general manager.
Bellingham Transportation Fund
Bellingham voters approved renewing a two-tenths of 1% sales tax by 82% to 18%.
Ferndale schools
Ferndale voters approved a second attempt at a levy to replace an expiring levy by 63% to 37%.
This story was originally published November 5, 2020 at 8:55 AM.
