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Dust settles; election outcomes the same
By Andrew Sirocchi, Staff Writer
Friday, November 5, 2004 12:01 PM PST
Final election results from Coos County brought no new surprises and ultimately made no differences to candidates who were narrowly leading their races.
Elections officials tabulated the final 3,800 ballots Thursday, and most of the expected winners extended their leads.
In a close race for the 9th House District, Democrat Arnie Roblan extended his lead over Republican Susan Massey. Roblan, who had a mere 502-vote lead before the final tally, moved farther ahead with 10,526 votes in Coos County to Massey's 9,693 - winning the area with nearly 52 percent of the vote.
In the final tally, Roblan - the only Democrat to have fared well in Coos County - picked up an additional 1,017 votes to Massey's 863 new votes. He led the district covering Coos, Douglas and Lane counties with 14,822 votes to Massey's 14,121.
"For me it was a strong working relationship with local business in town, the (Coos Bay-North Bend) Water Board connection and the (Friends of New and Sustainable Industry) connection," Roblan said of his local success. "People who may not have philosophically been voting for Democrats realized I would work across the aisle. I think, in the final analysis that made the difference."
Roblan said he will spend the next few months talking to local agencies about their needs and attend training in Salem. He said he intends to examine the benefits of a proposed liquefied natural gas import terminal at Jordan Cove and wants to work with the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay to help develop a rail spur to the North Spit.
Massey, who congratulated Roblan and called him a formidable opponent, said she looks forward to continuing to help shape state politics as a member of the governor's Quality Education Commission, which helps draft policy on educational financing.
"I think the work the commission does will really be important to legislators as they work on how to craft funding for education," she said. "I haven't made other decisions but it is a huge relief at least to know the results of the election."
The full count came two days after Tuesday's election when thousands of Coos County ballots were uncounted, in part due to a tabulating machine that broke down over Election Day. The county's tightest races hung in the balance of 3,800 unknown votes.
In the race for state Senate's 5th District, Republican Al Pearn was able to carve into his deficit but Democrat Joanne Verger won the seat by overwhelmingly winning in Lincoln County - the only portion of the five-county district that voted in her favor.
The final tally showed Pearn received 10,318 votes in Coos County to Verger's 10,083. Pearn picked up about 1,000 votes in the final count to Verger's additional 900, but the 100 vote difference was not enough to give him the lead.
Across the entire district, which covers portions of Coos, Douglas, Lane, Lincoln, Polk, Tillamook and Yamhill counties, Verger received 29,906 votes to Pearn's 29,009. The campaign was framed as a battle for the previously deadlocked state Senate and the seat was seen as critical for both parties. Ultimately, Democrats picked up three Senate seats formerly held by Republicans.
Meanwhile, the race for Coos County commissioner between Democrat Joe Whitsett and Republican John Griffith remained largely unchanged by the final vote. Griffith received 16,883 votes to Whitsett's 14,817, giving him the win with nearly 53 percent of the vote.
The race had the largest undervote of any of the local races. More than 1,578 voters picked no candidate for the position and 113 voters wrote in someone other than Griffith or Whitsett. |