Whitman County voters will decide today whether to pass several replacement levies for local schools and other community operations, including two proposed levies above the legal state levy cap.
All ballots must be deposited in a Colfax drop box or postmarked by 8 p.m. tonight. Auditor Sandy Jamison recommends using a drop box at this point to avoid the risk of a late postmark. (Ballot boxes in Pullman are not open for this election.)
Jamison wrote via email that her office has issued 2,148 ballots to voters living in districts with issues on the ballot. Preliminary results should be posted to the county Elections website by about 9 p.m.
“This election has gone very smoothly so far,” she wrote, “and this is truly due to my excellent elections staff members.”
The Oakesdale, Colton and Lamont school districts have operational levies. The Town of Colton is running a levy for general, street and sewer projects. The Tekoa parks district is also running two propositions. Here’s the sample ballot with details.
Jamison noted she did not expect the weather to impact election operations. She praised the work of the local U.S. Postal Service employees for making sure ballots get collected.
The Whitman County Elections Center at 304 N. Main Street in Colfax has a drop box inside as well as one in the alley behind the building. Check back this evening for preliminary results.
Update at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday:
Preliminary election results show all Whitman County levies passing with strong support. The narrowest lead of 64 percent approval went to Oakesdale School District’s proposed levy. The first ballot tabulation counted just 471 ballots with an estimated 350 ballots remaining for the next tabulation on Wednesday afternoon. Voter turnout measured 17.6 percent so far.
Correction: Tekoa Parks District ran two propositions (not just one).