Election Results Day 3—Classic Hits 100.7 KLOG News

With about 700 ballots left to count in Cowlitz County, Chris Bryant has expanded his lead over Oliver Black in the Longview City Council race. After the initial results came in on Tuesday, Black led by 34 votes. On Wednesday, Bryant took the lead by 4 votes, and as of yesterday, he’s now up by 134. The other two Longview City Council races narrowed slightly but saw no change in outcome — Mike Claxton and Wayne Nichols have both won.

Nichols came out with a public statement yesterday on social media; he said, “I just want to say ‘Thank You’ to all of the good citizens of Longview who voted in support of our campaign. Your vote resulted in this overwhelming victory, and I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to serve!” He added that, “I had a very kind and respectful congratulatory call from my opponent this morning, and want to thank him for his grace!”

His opponent for the city council seat, Longview Mayor Spencer Boudreau, made a statement of his own, saying, “It’s been the honor of my life to be your Mayor, we took public safety seriously, delivering on additional police officers, we advocated for and funded public works projects and vital infrastructure enhancements that connect neighborhoods and protect students, and we made our parks and public spaces clean and safe for normal enjoyment.”

One race in the Kalama City Council remains close; Paige Bozarth’s lead on Chad Nelson is just 34 votes.

In the close Toutle Lake School Board race, Shebanyah VanHoof gained on her lead yesterday; she is now up on Heather Shoonover by 56 votes.

Voter turnout in Cowlitz County is now listed at just over 32%, with just under 25,000 ballots counted. The next batch of outstanding ballots will be reported on Monday by 5 p.m.