SEQUIM — Incumbent School Board member Walter Johnson held a healthy lead over challenger and community volunteer Stephen Rosales on Tuesday night after initial ballots were counted in Tuesday’s general election.
Johnson led Rosales by 4,165 votes, or 57 percent, to 3,172 votes, or 43 percent.
“That sounds like victory, then,” Johnson, 82, said upon learning the results Tuesday night.
Rosales, 55, interim volunteer director of the Sequim Food Bank, conceded defeat.
“I’m fine,” he said.
“I can still help children, still work with children.
“I respect the voters,” he said. “I’ll still get up and do all my volunteer stuff.”
The Clallam County elections office counted 17,802 ballots Tuesday, or 38 percent of the 45,731 registered voters who were mailed ballots, and has about 5,000 left to count from all ballots received as of Tuesday and what is estimated will come in today, Rosand said Tuesday night.
Tallied Tuesday were all ballots received between Oct. 19, when the ballots were mailed, and Monday.
The Auditor’s Office received 3,591 ballots Tuesday.
The next ballot count is 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
“I expect to have another heavy return [today] and hope that we end up with at least a 55 percent voter turnout for this election,” county Auditor Patty Rosand said Monday.
The election must be certified Nov. 29.
Rosales said there was “no question” that a charge of discrimination against the Sequim unit of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula — which was later dropped by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — hurt his chances for victory.
He was the focus of the charge, leveled by former Boys & Girls Clubs employee Lindsey A. Richardson, who claimed the club did not properly respond to complaints that Rosales had screamed at her and made inappropriate sexual comments.
Rosales vigorously denied the charge.
Johnson is a retired engineer who also served on the Southfield, Mich., School Board for 24 years and obtained his master’s degree in engineering mechanics from the University of Michigan.
Rosales, volunteer interim director of the Sequim Food Bank, retired as chief of staff for Texas Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock.
Rosales, his wife and their two pre-teen daughters moved to Sequim in 2005.
Rosales was named Citizen of the Year for 2007 by the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce and was one of seven individuals who received the 2011 Clallam County Community Service Award, which is sponsored by the Peninsula Daily News and Soroptimist International of Port Angeles (noon club).
The Sequim School Board passes an annual budget that for the 2010-2011 school year includes $24.8 million for general fund, day-to-day expenses and $1.1 million for capital projects.
The district has a staff of 160 teachers and 98 classified personnel.
School Board members do not receive compensation.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-417-3536 or at paul.gottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.