Clark County Commissioner Steve Stuart’s lead over challenger Alan Svehaug slipped ever-so-slightly Thursday, from 4,481 votes to 4,458.
Updated election results were released shortly before 5 p.m. and reflected an additional 17,481 votes counted in the race.
While Stuart has avoided the drastic post-election night drop experienced in 2008 by Democrat Pam Brokaw when she ran against Republican Tom Mielke for county commissioner, Stuart was not ready to declare victory on Thursday.
“Call me overly cautious if you want,” said Stuart, a Democrat seeking his second full four-year term.
Traditionally, late ballots have trended Republican, Stuart said, and it’s still mathematically possible that Svehaug, a political newcomer backed by David Madore of Notolls.com, could win.
In the Brokaw-Mielke race two years ago, her lead shrunk from 4,282 votes to 3,251 votes, then down to 633 votes before Mielke took the lead.
Mielke ended up winning by 207 votes.
Svehaug, a Republican, did not return a call seeking comment.
Stuart won 58 percent in the August primary, but those reflected voters in his district, which is essentially the city of Vancouver.
Voters countywide weighed in on the race for the general election.
A total of 137,583 ballots have been counted in Tuesday’s general election; another 7,500 are expected to be counted today, said Auditor Greg Kimsey.
The vote totals released this afternoon will reflect approximately 99 percent of the ballots cast, Kimsey said.
In the tight race for Clark County clerk, challenger Scott Weber overtook incumbent Sherry Parker.
Weber now leads by 444 votes, out of 128,887 votes cast in that race.
Parker led on election night by 84 votes, a lead that increased to 223 votes after Wednesday’s count.
Weber, a Republican, did not return a call Thursday seeking comment.
Weber, a manufacturing engineering technician for Columbia Machine, received 51 percent of the vote in the August primary.
Parker, who is seeking a second term, attributed her loss in the primary to low turnout by Democrats.
On Thursday, she said she’s “not real happy” with the fact that The Columbian, which has covered the race and endorsed Parker, accidentally left it out of an Oct. 31 article that listed other races.
“I don’t think that helped matters any,” Parker said. “I don’t know I really have a statement for you, to tell you the truth,” she said.
In another close race, Clark Public Utilities Commissioner Nancy Barnes hung on to a 1,336-vote lead over challenger Mike Lyons.
Stephanie Rice: 360-735-4508 or stephanie.rice@columbian.com.
