PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles School Board challenger Patti Happe took a 51-vote lead over incumbent Lynn Geren on Thursday after 2,958 more ballots were added to the initial general election tally released Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the countywide buyer’s excise tax continued going down to defeat by a 60 percent to 40 percent margin.
The tax would have charged a half of 1 percent on property sales. The money — an estimated $27 million over 10 years — would have been used to preserve farmland from being gobbled up by development.
As of Thursday’s count, the tax was losing 9,798 votes to 6,532 votes.
“We will reluctantly agree that the voters have spoken,” said Bob Caldwell, vice president of Clallam Citizens for Food Security, which supported the tax.
“We’re grateful that 40 percent of voters agreed to tax themselves to save farmland.”
Happe, who was trailing Geren by six votes after Tuesday’s initial general election count, is now leading 2,739 votes to 2,688 votes.