PORT TOWNSEND — Pamela Adams has won a seat on the City Council by 16 votes, according to the latest count of general election ballots.
The outcome is not expected to change, despite the 16 ballots from Port Townsend awaiting resolution of signature problems.
Adams’ opponent has conceded.
“Right now, it’s mathematically impossible to change,” said Harold Sherwood, 65.
“I wish Pam the best in her four years on City Council.”
Sherwood, a veterinarian, called Adams, a retired chiropractor, on Friday with congratulations.
Adams, 69, said she knows the election isn’t official until it is certified Nov. 26, “but I feel confident enough to celebrate.
“I’m so grateful to the voters for giving me this opportunity to serve them on City Council. I thank my supporters for their faith in me, and I especially want to thank my husband, Mike.
“I have a lot to learn, and I am ready and excited to represent all of Port Townsend.”
A fourth count of general election ballots Friday saw Adams increasing her slight lead over Sherwood, with 1,960 votes, or 50.2 percent, to Sherwood’s 1,944 votes, or 49.8 percent.
Currently, 16 Port Townsend votes are in play. Five have illegible signatures; 11 have no signatures.
The Jefferson County auditor is seeking clarification of the illegibly signed ballots.
Elections Supervisor Karen Cartmel doesn’t expect any of the 11 that lack signatures to be resolved.
“If these five votes were all allowed and they all went for Sherwood, it still would not be within the recount range,” she said.
An automatic recount would be triggered if the margin between the two candidates fell below 0.05 percent.
The latest counts did not change outcomes in any other races or measures that were decided in the Nov. 5 election.
Voter turnout countywide in the general election is 64.64 percent, with 14,719 ballots returned out of the 22,772 mailed to registered voters.
It was Adams’ second try at a council seat. She filed in 2011 but withdrew after learning she did not meet residency requirements.
Winning the election represented the second bit of good news she received Friday.
Her sixth grandchild, Sadie Juleanne Hodus, was born in California at 9:30 a.m.
Voters have until 4:30 p.m. Nov. 25 to come into the office to clear up the signatures.
Otherwise, the county canvassing board will make the determination.
Adams led Sherwood by 26 votes in the initial count of ballots Nov. 5. Her lead shrank to seven votes after a Nov. 8 count and increased to 10 votes Thursday.
Three seats on the City Council were open this year, with incumbents Michelle Sandoval and Catharine Robinson surviving respective challenges from Bob Jautz and Patrick Moore.
Adams, who was running for a seat left vacant after the retirement of Mark Welch, had aligned herself with the two incumbents.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
