The candidates who emerged as front runners during the first count of ballots on Nov. 8 have held onto their leads following subsequent ballot counts.
As of Tuesday, Nov. 14, there were still an estimated 17,000 ballots left to count in Thurston County. The next update was expected at 4 p.m. that day, after the Nisqually Valley News’ deadline.
Sheriff
Updated election results on Monday, Nov. 14, showed Derek Sanders leading in the race for Thurston County sheriff against incumbent John Snaza.
Sanders garnered 54,227 votes, or 54.8%, on Monday, compared to Snaza’s 44,236 votes, or 44.7%. The race featured 483 write-in votes at that time.
Sanders is a deputy currently serving under Snaza at the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Having previously served in the Lacey Police Department, Sanders chose to run to get people talking about issues he felt got ignored, he said previously.
If he wins the election, Sanders plans to create a civilian advisory board to improve transparency at the sheriff’s office and wants to focus on improving deputy retention within the office.
Snaza was originally elected sheriff in 2010, and following successful re-election bids in 2014 and 2018, was seeking his fourth four-year term as sheriff.
A Gulf War veteran from Rochester, Snaza has worked in law enforcement for 30 years. His twin brother, Rob Snaza, currently serves as sheriff in Lewis County.
Snaza made public safety a priority and addressed the worsening opioid epidemic during his campaign.
Commissioner for District Three
Preliminary election results show incumbent Tye Menser will likely retain his seat as the Thurston County commissioner for District Three after he garnered 58,061 votes, or over 56%, against his challenger Vivian Kay Eason, who garnered 45,015 votes, or about 44%, as of Nov. 14. There were 103 write-in votes in the race.
Menser, who is a Democrat, was first elected to the seat in 2019.
The voters pamphlet stated he was an attorney from 1997 to 2018. In his role as commissioner, Menser helped pass the climate mitigation plan and created one of the state’s first green-energy financing programs. Menser also chairs the county’s board of health.
Eason, who is a Republican, served 25 years in the juvenile and criminal justice system and spent 15 years in emergency management with Thurston County. She retired as a master sergeant in 2019 after 31 years with the U.S. Army Reserves.
Other Races
Thurston County Auditor Mary Hall remains in the lead for her position as she garnered 64,093 votes, or almost 62%, as of Nov. 14, to challenger Sal Militello, who secured 39,260 votes, or about 38%.
Hall, a Democrat, has held the office since 2013. She began her career as the elections manager of Pierce County in 1996. Militello is a current PCO for Olympia Precinct 17.
Linda Enlow, the incumbent clerk for Thurston County, garnered 49,353 votes, or about 56%, against challenger Tonya Moore, who brought in 35,814 votes, or about 41% of the vote, as of Nov. 14. The race included 3,052 write-in votes at that time.
In the race for Thurston County assessor, incumbent Steven Drew was in the lead with 57,485 votes, or around 56% of the vote, as of Nov. 14. Drew’s challenger, Dave Kolar, garnered 44,119 votes, or 43.31%. There were 263 write-in votes.
Jeff Gadman, the current Thurston County treasurer, secured 62,408 votes, or about 63%, as of Nov. 14, to challenger Jeff Curry’s 35,551 votes or about 36%. There were 382 write-in votes.
Coroner Gary Warnock and Prosecuting Attorney Jon Tunheim ran for re-election unopposed.
Measure to Expand Board of Commissioners
Updated election results show voters in Thurston County are so far in support of increasing the Thurston County Board of Commissioners from three to five people.
Out of 101,311 votes as of Nov. 14, about 55% of ballots, or 55,639 people, supported the measure, while 45%, or 45,672 people, opposed the measure.
If approved, the county will be divided into five commissioner districts so that each one comprises as close to one-fifth of the population as possible.
The effort to expand the BOCC is in coordination with the Port of Olympia. The two entities signed a joint resolution in fall of 2021 to put forward ballot measures to expand both governing bodies.
The port’s measure to expand from three to five commissioners who would serve in five newly created districts had 50.71%, or 50,954 votes, in favor of the measure, while 49.29%, or 49,523 votes, were cast in opposition.
There were still an estimated 17,000 ballots left to count as of Nov. 14.
The election is set to be certified on Nov. 29.
