PORT TOWNSEND — A voter measure to grant Jefferson County Public Utility District the authority to provide electric power was leading Tuesday night after the first wave of general election votes were counted.
Proposition 1 had 8,092 yes votes, or 53.96 percent, to 6,903 against, or 46.04 percent in Tuesday’s count.
A majority of yes votes would authorize Jefferson County PUD to construct and-or acquire electric facilities for the generation, transmission or distribution of electric power within the territory served by Puget Sound Energy in East Jefferson County.
“I think it was outreach,” said a happy Steve Hamm, co-facilitator with Citizens for Local Power, after the results were announced.
“I always had my doubts, and this is just waiting for the fat lady to sing.”
Davina Gruenstein, PSE spokeswoman, said she was surprised it would take until Friday to get a second vote tally in Jefferson County.
“We’re still waiting for the final results,” Gruenstein said.
“It’s pretty close, and we’re unsure if it could go the other way or not.”
Gruenstein said no matter what happens, “We are still there to serve. We really aren’t going anywhere.
“This is a vote of the people and we have to go with the decision.”
She said PSE would be at service in the county “until PUD comes up with a plan.”
The results tallied only ballots cast on or before Tuesday, when 15,933 ballots were counted in Jefferson County elections — 82.28 percent of the 22,160 ballots mailed out after Oct. 15. The next count is scheduled Friday.
County Auditor Donna Eldridge said she expects at least 2,000 more ballots will be tallied, possibly reaching the 92 percent voter turnout she predicted.
Community meetings
The group that started its effort gathering voter signatures on a petition during the first half of the year, ended the election season with more than 30 community meetings to discuss the issue with county residents and business owners, said Bill Wise, the group’s other facilitator.
Hamm said he saw a bipartisan movement in the county to achieve PUD power service authority, with as much Republican as Democratic support.
“Raise the flag,” he told Port Ludlow campaign supporter Phil Otness by phone at the Jefferson County Courthouse.
“I think the citizens of Jefferson County saw this as a way of keeping our options open.”
PUD commissioners have said they will conduct more study to determine whether they want to go into the electric service business.
PUD now provides water and sewer services to more than 3,000 customers.
The commissioners would have to condemn PSE’s East Jefferson County facilities, a move that it projected would take up to three years.
PSE representatives have said they would not give up their facilities without just compensation.
The power-authority proposal pitted grassroots group Citizens for Local Power against PSE, which now provides power to more than 3 million customers within its 6,000-square-mile service area, and whose executives threatened Jefferson County PUD with a long legal fight even before the measure made the ballot.
PSE shareholders contributed $249,565.54 to a media campaign over the past six weeks, state Public Disclosure Commission records show.
Their campaign group, Jefferson County Citizens Against Proposition 1, was formed by a PSE-contracted political consultant, Strategies 360, based in Seattle.
By comparison, Citizens for Local Power reported $28,217 in contributions.
Proposition 1 does not include Brinnon, south of Mount Walker to Mason County, and West Jefferson County, which are now served power from Mason, Clallam and Grays Harbor PUDs.
Citizens for Local Power has argued that granting PUD power authority would provide local control of electric service and better customer service, create living-wage jobs and consumer cost savings on energy purchased from Bonneville Power Administration, which has set aside 250 kwh for new PUDs, and tax exemptions.
PSE officials say they want to continue the service they have provided to East Jefferson County for more than 100 years and will not pull out without a fight.
They argue that it gives the PUD a blank check to raise property taxes, increase electric rates and issue revenue bonds to finance the condemnation of PSE’s electric system within Jefferson County.
About 2,000 ballots were in hand, but not counted Tuesday night, Eldridge said, including those collected from the ballot drop box behind the county courthouse at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Another count will be on Friday.
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Port Townsend-Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
