PORT TOWNSEND — Leif Erickson unseated longtime incumbent Herb Beck while Dave Thompson kept his seat against challenger Bob Schuessler on the Port of Port Townsend commission, as the first results of Tuesday’s general election were tallied.
Erickson, the 58-year-old production manager at Townsend Bay Marine, took 5,212 votes, or 52.58 percent, to Beck’s 4,656 votes, or 46.97 percent in the initial count.
Beck, 71, has held the District 3 seat on the commission since 1972.
He is the longest-serving port commissioner in the state.
“It doesn’t look too good,” said Beck, speaking from his Quilcene home.
He added that he doubted the second count Thursday would make a difference.
“That’s the way it goes.”
Beck’s fellow incumbent, Thompson — a 66-year-old shipwright long based at Port Townsend Boat Haven — took 5,294 votes, or 57.68 percent, to Schuessler’s 3,824, or 41.66 percent for District 2 seat.
“I thought I was going to be out of work, but I guess not,” Thompson joked at the Jefferson County Courthouse.
“It seems that the port has been better received in the community and that might have something to do with it,” he added.
County Auditor Donna Eldridge said that her office tallied 11,985 ballots out of the 21,983 mailed in the general election.
She said the voter turnout was 54.2 percent.
Eldridge estimated that there were about 600 votes in hand that would be counted at noon Thursday at her office on the second floor of Jefferson County Courthouse.
Democrats’ endorsement
Beck said he believes the Jefferson County Democrats’ unprecedented endorsement of Erickson for the nonpartisan position “didn’t help any.”
Erickson, after seeing the results Tuesday night at the courthouse, said he believed that the Democratic Party’s support, plus the backing of many members of the Port Townsend Marine Trades Association, helped lead him to the apparent win.
Erickson said he would resign Nov. 11 from his seat on the Marine Trades Association board, a position he has held for four years.
“I’ve got a good grasp of what their issues are, firsthand,” Erickson said, adding that the primary concern he heard was to keep marine trades operators employed in difficult economic times.
The marine trades are the largest employment sector in the county, port officials have said, with at least 400 jobs.
“I think that the voters of Jefferson County were ready for a change,” Erickson said of his win.
Schuessler, a 66-year-old retired harbormaster who fought hardest for improving port boat ramps, even calling himself “Boat Ramp Bob” on his campaign signs said, “To me it looks like Dave ran away with it.”
Schuessler said it appeared he made a good showing, but it was not enough.
He congratulated Thompson, calling him a “gracious” and “humble” opponent.
District 2 includes Cape George, Beckett Point, Chimacum, Port Hadlock, Kala Point, Irondale and Nordland.
District 3 covers Gardiner, Discovery Bay, Eaglemount, Lake Leland, Quilcene, Coyle, Brinnon, Thorndyke, Center, Port Ludlow, Paradise Bay and Queets.
There are 7,235 registered voters in District 2 and 7,614 registered in District 3.
The port commissioners pass an annual budget of about $6.3 million and can increase the tax levy by up to 1 percent without a vote of the people, by law.
The port commissioners hire an executive director who supervises 26 full- and part-time employees.
The port commissioners are responsible for managing the Boat Haven and Point Hudson marinas, Jefferson County International Airport, the 40-acre Herb Beck Marina and Industrial Park in Quilcene and manages 600 acre, including tidelands, and six boat ramps throughout the county.
Compensation for port commissioners is $104 per meeting and for every day commissioners conduct port business and up to $200 in monthly stipend up to $12,385 annually for both payments combined.
The commissioners receive medical and dental insurance and IRS gas mileage rate is at 55 cents a mile.
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Port Townsend-Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
