Voter turnout neared 30% ahead of primary

Published 7:30 pm Monday, August 5, 2024

PACIFIC COUNTY — Almost 30% of all Pacific County voters had returned their ballot a day before Tuesday’s primary election, one of the highest turnout rates in the state.

As of Monday, Aug. 5, 29.6% of voters in Pacific County had returned their primary election ballot. That total ranks fourth in the state, trailing Jefferson, Garfield and Clallam counties.

While holding one of the highest turnout rates in the state, the share of ballots that had been returned by Monday lags well behind the same pace four years ago. In 2020, just shy of 45% of all ballots had been returned the Monday before that year’s primary election.

Overall, statewide turnout sat at 20.5% as of Aug. 5 — down from 29.2% at the same period in 2020.

Initial coverage of Tuesday’s primary election can be found on chinookobserver.com, and a comprehensive recap of the results of local, state and federal races will run in the Aug. 14 print issue. Later arriving ballots are expected to be counted throughout the week, with the county auditor’s office expecting to release more results later this week or early next week.

The most interesting race on the ballot may be the three-way contest between congressional candidates for two spots on the general election ballot. In Washington’s primary system, the top two vote getters in the primary advance to the November general, regardless of party affiliation. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is competing against Trump loyalist Joe Kent, a Clark County Republican, and Leslie Lewallen, a Camas city councilor running as a more establishment Republican.