Graham maintains lead in close state House race; general obligation bond still on-track to pass; other updates

Republican Jenny Graham continued to hold a slim lead over Democratic opponent Dave Wilson in Spokane’s closest legislative race as ballot counts continued Wednesday.

With Republicans comfortably ahead for the state Senate and the other House seat, Graham led Wilson by 295 votes.

Wednesday’s count produced no reversals from the election night counts in Spokane. Leonard Christian holds a lead of about 1,000 votes over fellow Republican Tom Konis for the county auditor position.

The $495 million Spokane Public Schools bond to build and replace schools was at 67 percent, well above the 60 percent supermajority needed for passage. Voter preference for the location of new high school stadium remained overwhelmingly in favor of a spot near the current Joe Albi Stadium, with support for the downtown alternative strongest on the South Hill.

The Spokane library bond, which also needs a 60 percent approval rating, was at 63 percent.

A contentious race to replace retiring Stevens County Sheriff Kendle Allen remains too close to call, though early vote totals show Brad Manke leading Mike Berry by more than three percentage points. With 13,365 ballots counted and 6,604 left to go as of Wednesday afternoon, the final tally, expected on Friday, could flip the race in Berry’s favor. Manke, however, did top Berry by a slim margin in the August primary.

No other race for a Stevens County office is as close as the sheriff’s contest. In every other countywide election, the winning candidate has at least 61 percent of the vote, according to the initial ballot count. The county auditor’s office reported voter turnout was about 43 percent.