Ozias, Beauvais lead after first ballot count

PORT ANGELES — Incumbents Mark Ozias of the Clallam County commission and Connie Beauvais of the Port of Port Angeles appear headed for reelection after the initial tally of general election ballots Tuesday night.

Ozias, a 49-year-old Democrat, is running against challenger Brandon Janisse, a 34-year-old Republican, for the Sequim area seat on the county commission.

Beauvais, 68, a Joyce resident, is seeking reelection to the port’s Westside District 3 seat. She is challenged by Maury Modine, 63, of Beaver.

The Clallam County Auditor’s Office counted 13,234 ballots Tuesday night, which is 24.56 percent of the 53,887 provided registered voters. The next ballot count will be by 4:30 p.m. today.

In other contested races:

— Ann Marie Henninger, 52, took a large lead over Nate Adkisson, 40, both of Sequim, for the District 1 seat on the Olympic Medical Center commission, which is now held by John Beitzel, as did incumbent Jean Hordyk, 72, of Port Angeles was ahead in her race against challenger Ted Bowen, 36, of Carlsborg for the OMC District 2 seat.

— No incumbents were running for the three seats on the Port Angeles City Council.

Charlie McCaughan, 63, had won the Position 5 seat over Richard ‘Doc’ Robinson, 66. The seat is being vacated by Michael Merideth.

Nina Napiontek, 38, was leading Navarra Carr, 27, for the Position 6 seat being vacated by Mayor Sissi Bruch.

And Brendan Meyer, 35, was leading Martha Cunningham, 67, for the Position 7 seat being vacated by Cherie Kidd.

— An incumbent on the Sequim City Council was challenged by a declared write-in candidate because of the controversy over a planned medicine-assisted treatment clinic.

Incumbent Jennifer States won handily against write-in candidate Sarah W. Kincaid for Position 2.

— Katie Marks, 48, was leader Arwen Rice, 50, for the Port Angeles School Board’s Position 3 seat now held by Dr. Joshua Jones.

— In Forks, Mike Gilstrap, 47, was leading Danny Smith, who declined to provide biographical information, for the Position 5 seat on the City Council, which is now held by Jon Preston.

— Steven G. Hopf, 64, was ahead of Keith Cortner, 60, in the initial count for the Clallam County Fire District 2 seat now held by Richard Rudd.

— In Clallam Bay, Greg Bellamy Sr., 65. was leading against appointee Karin Ashton, 69, in the contest for the fire district’s position 2 seat.

— J. Mike Rudd, 64, was ahead of incumbent Jan L. Richardson in the count of ballots for the Park and Recreation District 1, Position 5 — formerly the Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center.

Local measures on the ballot include:

— Voters overwhelmingly gave the go-ahead to a levy-lid lift to help the Joyce Fire District deal with declining timber revenue. The measure, which will raise the district’s levy rate by 69 cents per $1,000 property valuation, needs only a simple majority to pass.

— Voters were passing a Port Angeles city measure to impose a one-tenth of 1 percent sales tax hike to generate an estimated $325,000 in revenue for new construction of affordable housing, rehabilitation of existing housing into affordable housing and construction of infrastructure required for affordable housing developments.

A simple majority is needed for approval.

If the measure is approved, the sales tax rate in Port Angeles will rise from the current 8.7 percent to 8.8 percent.

In measures involving both Clallam and Jefferson county voters:

— Sequim School Board incumbent Jim Stoffer, 59, was ahead of challenger Beth Smithson, 38, in the contest for the Position 3 seat.

— William ‘Bill’ Miano III, 48, was leading incumbent James Barnfather, 68, for the District 3 seat on the Clallam County Fire District 3 commission.

— Clallam County Fire District 3, which serves residents in both Clallam and Jefferson counties, was easily winning a bid for a renewal of the emergency medical services levy through 2029.

The EMS levy voters renewed for 10 years in 2009 is due to expire in 2020.

It needs a simple majority vote for approval.