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Pridemore leads Stewart in county commissioner race

Auditor: 'It's too close to call'

By Tyler Graf
Published: November 5, 2014, 12:00am
3 Photos
Steve Dipaola for The Columbian
Democrat Craig Pridemore and supporters react to early election results at the Grant House. After the first returns, Pridemore has a small lead over Republican Jeanne Stewart.
Steve Dipaola for The Columbian Democrat Craig Pridemore and supporters react to early election results at the Grant House. After the first returns, Pridemore has a small lead over Republican Jeanne Stewart. Photo Gallery

Craig Pridemore held a lead over Jeanne Stewart in a Clark County commissioner race pitting two familiar faces.

Democrat Pridemore received 51.3 percent of the vote to Republican Stewart’s 48.5 percent in the first returns. In order to pull off a victory, Pridemore will have to garner about 47.5 percent of the estimated 45,000 votes remaining.

That could be tougher than it appears.

“It’s too close to call,” said county Auditor Greg Kimsey. “We see more conservative votes coming in late.”

That happened in 2008, when Republican Commissioner Tom Mielke eked out a 209-vote win over Democrat Pam Brokaw. In that election, Brokaw was considered the presumptive winner until late returns were counted. That race wasn’t certified until December.

Among a small throng of well-wishers at Gaiser Hall, Pridemore said he was heartened by the returns but would wait before presuming the race was won.

He said it was possible that the votes could swing in Stewart’s favor.

“Democrats tend to slip after elect-ion night,” he said.

He said the last couple of weeks had been a whirlwind of activity.

“There was a lot of stress because of the negative messaging,” he said.

Stewart did not respond to repeated telephone and email messages, and did not make any election night appearances.

Both candidates ended up spending thousands of dollars in recent weeks on television advertisements, though both are well-known political faces in Clark County. Pridemore served as commissioner from 1999 until 2004, when he won election to the state Senate. He was succeeded by Steve Stuart, who resigned earlier in the year, thereby creating an incumbent-free election for the District 3 seat.

Pridemore left the Senate to run unsuccessfully for state auditor in 2012. Ed Barnes was appointed to the seat after Stuart resigned earlier this year.

Stewart had been a political mainstay of the city of Vancouver, serving first on the planning commission before a 12-year stint on City Council. That came to an end last year, when she lost her position to Alishia Topper.

While Stewart had never run a partisan campaign, she both embraced and distanced herself from the Republican moniker.

She said she would be an independent voice on the county board. But toward the end of the campaign, she received a wave of money from the state Republican Party to pay for campaign ads.

As a result, Pridemore spent much of his remaining dollars on his own advertisements.

Whoever wins the election will be joining a board in transition.

Voters also approved a county charter Tuesday, ensuring that changes will come to how the commissioners — who will become councilors starting Jan. 1 — do business.

Stewart opposed the charter, while Pridemore vocally supported it.

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