Governor’s race lead now Rossi’s

OLYMPIA – After a week of trailing Democrat Christine Gregoire in the race for governor, Republican Dino Rossi jumped to a narrow lead Tuesday night.

At 6 p.m., Rossi was ahead by 2,123 votes, out of nearly 2.6 million counted so far.

“No matter who wins this one, it’s going to be very, very close,” Rossi said.

His lead may not last long, however.

Part of the reason Rossi did so well Tuesday, erasing Gregoire’s nearly 8,000-vote lead a day before, was due to thousands of votes from rural counties. The counties that tilt heavily toward Gregoire – notably Seattle and the rest of vote-heavy King County – didn’t tally votes Tuesday.

“Tomorrow, however, King County does report,” said state Democratic Party Chairman Paul Berendt. “And most of Rossi’s friendly counties will be done.”

King County is believed to have about 46,000 votes left to count, out of 156,000 left statewide. Spokane and Snohomish counties each estimate about 20,000 ballots remaining. With Election Day more than a week ago, the votes being counted now consist of late-arriving mail-in ballots and “provisional ballots” given to voters whose legitimacy could not immediately be verified at polling sites.

Berendt and Gregoire’s campaign both tried to downplay Rossi’s lead Tuesday, saying they wouldn’t be surprised if Rossi ended the day ahead by as many as 8,000 votes.

“Chris Gregoire is going to be Washington’s next governor,” said Berendt. She’s faring better than other Democrats in Republican-leaning Eastern Washington, he said, and is getting an increasing share of the absentee votes.

State law requires a recount if a winning margin is less than 2,000 votes.

Rossi irked Gregoire by calling a press conference in Bellevue on Tuesday to announce his transition plans if he wins. He named 18 transition advisers, including Spokane Mayor Jim West and Democratic former Seattle Mayor Wes Uhlman. Rossi also named half a dozen transition staff to handle budget plans, policies and hiring if he becomes governor.

Rossi said he started the process rolling on the advice of former Govs. Dan Evans and John Spellman. If there’s a recount in the race, the state’s next governor could remain unknown into December, Rossi said. That’s too long to wait, he said.

“Be prepared, like the Boy Scouts,” Rossi said in a phone interview. “I don’t know if I’m going to win; she (Gregoire) doesn’t know if she’s going to win. But one thing’s for certain: They aren’t going to move Inauguration Day.”

Democrats scoffed, although they acknowledged that Gregoire is doing the same sort of transition preparations that Rossi is.

“There’s no need to hold a press conference and talk about it,” said Berendt, calling Rossi’s announcement “presumptuous.”

“It’s nothing but game-playing,” Berendt said.

In a statement, Gregoire said she was avoiding discussing her transition plans “because I don’t want to overshadow the ongoing vote count.”