PORT TOWNSEND — Incumbent City Council member Michelle Sandoval will advance to the Nov. 5 general election in her quest for a fourth term, with a challenge apparently from Bob Jautz, voters decided Tuesday, while Harold Sherwood and Pamela Adams will compete to fill the seat left vacant by Mark Welch, who declined to seek another term.
Sandoval, who received 1,789 votes,or 52.85 percent, apparently will face Jautz, who received 828 votes, or 24.46 percent, in the Position 1 contest over former City Council member Vern Garrison’s 743 votes, or 21.95 percent.
The top two vote-getters advance to the November general election.
“We are a small town that isn’t getting much from the federal government or the state,” Sandoval said.
“People want the services, so we need to figure out how to provide them.”
Sandoval, 55, said she looked forward to facing Jautz in the Nov. 5 election.
“I’m glad Bob won because he and I decided to disagree without being disagreeable,” Sandoval said.
“Now the heavy lifting starts,” said Jautz, 74. “I have to start ringing doorbells and get some signs up.
“I want to see a more realistic approach to financing,” he added. “We have some economic troubles in the future and we should get ready for them.
“We don’t want to spend everything we have.”
As of Tuesday, Port Townsend voters had returned 3,917 of 7,246 ballots, or 49.92 percent, issued in the city of Port Townsend.
Jefferson County Auditor Donna Eldridge said that measures up to other off-year election percentage totals.
In the Position 5 race, Sherwood, 65, was the biggest votegetter with 1.361 votes, or 44.32 percent, followed by Adams, 69, who earned 1,157 votes, or 37.6 percent.
Steve Oakford, 69, was eliminated from the contest, having received 517 votes, or 16.8 percent.
Adams said that the defeat of the $3 million library bond Tuesday proved that taxpayers are stretched too thin.
“The defeat of the bond shows that people feel overburdened by taxes and utility bills,” she said.
“I am hoping we can find other streams of revenue to pay for services and I would like to come up with some new possibilities that can keep us vital.”
Sherwood was not available for comment Tuesday night.
Sherwood, a veterinarian, has served two terms on the Port Townsend School Board.
Adams ran for the council in 2011 but was disqualified because she did not meet residency requirements.
She is a retired chiropracter teaching at the Port Townsend School of Massage and has not held elective office.
Sandoval was the only incumbent in Tuesday’s election. She is a real estate broker and co-owner of Windermere Real Estate in Port Townsend and has served three terms on the council, including two stints as mayor.
Garrison, 69, is semiretired from construction and land development.
Jautz worked for 20 years as a stockbroker on the New York Stock Exchange and 15 years as transportation surveyor for the California Department of Transportation.
He is now retired and has never held elective office.
The Auditor’s Office counted 5,463 ballots countywide Tuesday. That represented all that had been received by mail as of Tuesday, said Betty Johnson, Jefferson County voter registration coordinator.
Ballots in drop boxes were not counted, she said.
Eldridge expects those ballots, plus those postmarked Tuesday that arrive later this week, to number between 500 and 700.
The next count will be at about noon Friday.
A third seat on the Port Townsend City Council, Position 2, did not have a primary contest; in November incumbent Catharine Robinson will face off against challenger Patrick Moore.
Terms are for four years on the Port Townsend City Council.
Each member receives a $500 monthly stipend except for the mayor who gets $750 a month.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
