The Nov. 4, 2014, county commissioner race was in doubt until Nov. 8, when Craig Pridemore (D) conceded to Jeanne Stewart (R). It was close, 50.38 percent to 49.62 percent with a margin of 905 votes. That’s the way it is in Clark County, we elect some Democrats and some Republicans, and it’s often close.
Now we have a County Council chair race with Democratic primary winner (by 4 votes) Mike Dalesandro facing runner-up Marc Boldt, a “lifelong Republican” running with no party preference. Between them they split 53.37 percent of the primary vote, eliminating three other contenders. If this were a two-person election with Democrat vs. Republican, we’d expect a repeat of the Pridemore-Stewart race with nearly 50 percent on each side and an unpredictable finish.
We have Liz Pike (R) as a write-in candidate. Her well-financed campaign will cut into Boldt’s votes by an unknown amount, but likely enough to bring him well under 50 percent.
If Democrats stick together they’ll win the county chair in a cake walk, while the Republicans split their typical half of the vote between Boldt and Pike. That’s my bet for how the next step in the end of the M&M era will play out next month.
