Bob Ferguson, 6477…

Carolyn Edmonds, 6169

So it sits until the last of the mail votes are tallied. 308 votes may not seem like much of a lead, but it beats the heck out a 308 vote deficit.

If the vote totals seem low, it reflects the dismal turnout for the primary election. With all poll ballots and the mail votes on hand counted, King County's reporting something just over 14%. Since mail voters tend to return their ballots within a few days of receipt, it seems unlikely that the final tally will hit even a fourth of the potential voters. Anecdotally, it turns out that when the Brilliant and Beautiful Bride of Upper Left signed the tally sheet for our precinct, she was the first to do so since I had voted some seven hours earlier. Even if 75% of the ballots were cast by mail, that would be only 8 votes all day long in a precinct that had a near 70% turnout just last fall. One can only wonder if Edmonds' decision to direct a Rovian assault on Bob Ferguson was as successful in voter suppresion via disgust as Karl has been in the past. The turnout in the district with the hottest contest seems to argue so.

On an apparently brighter note, over 63% of voters county-wide selected a Democratic ballot. The light is dimmed a bit, though, with reports of Republican ballot mischief appearing. Another argument for partisan registration and a closed primary.