PORT ANGELES — It’s looking like four more years for Clallam County Commissioner Mike Chapman, who was leading his Republican challenger, Maggie Roth, by a commanding 23 percentage points Tuesday night.
The wide margin surprised Chapman, who on Tuesday night had 15,290 votes, or 61.64 percent of the returns. Roth had garnered 9,516 votes, or 38.26 percent.
Chapman, who changed his party preference from Republican to independent four years ago, said he’s worked hard “to show people we can govern from a bipartisan basis.
“We can stay out of debt; we can live within our means; we can have a balanced budget,” he added.
“That’s what has motivated me: to make sure that’s the DNA of the county.”
Chapman, 49, is in his third term as commissioner representing District 2, which is central Clallam County.
Roth, 58, never has held public elective office, but said Tuesday night that there’s a strong possibility she’ll run again.
“This doesn’t mean I’m going away,” she said. “It has been very fun. . . . I’ve tried to stay positive.”
Roth added that she hopes to see more county residents attend commissioners’ meetings, which include Monday work sessions and regular meetings each Tuesday.
“Sitting in on government meetings has opened my eyes,” she said, adding that she looks forward to continued involvement.
“I still have a lot of years left,” said Roth, 58.
“Maggie ran a great race,” Chapman said. “I’ve watched a lot of people run for commissioner, and nobody in my opinion has worked as hard.”
In his run for re-election, Chapman emphasized that the Clallam commissioners — himself, Democrat Mike Doherty and Republican Jim McEntire — have preserved core services and added no new taxes despite the recession.
“The county takes a conservative approach to budgeting by thoroughly examining yearly how tax dollars are allocated,” Chapman has noted.
Roth calling for the incumbent’s ouster, said, “I don’t feel [Chapman] has set forth enough positive change for the people.”
Clallam County commissioners serve four-year terms and receive a salary of $63,348 per year plus a $400 monthly car allowance and county employee benefits.
Their duties include passing a general fund budget that in 2012 is $31.1 million, with salaries for 368 full-time-equivalent employees.
The election results won’t be made official until later in November.
The Clallam County Auditor’s Office still has 5,481 ballots in hand yet to count.
By late Tuesday the office, had counted 26,870 ballots out of 47,157 issued. Auditor Patty Rosand reported a total return of 32,351 votes, a turnout of 65.6 percent, as of Tuesday night.
She expects about 8,000 more ballots in the all-mail election to come in for a final voter turnout of 86 percent.
The next count will be at 4:30 p.m. Friday; Rosand predicted a rise in the Clallam voter turnout to 86 percent after the rest of the returned ballots are tallied.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
