Just 33 votes separate two Benton County candidates. Mandatory recount ordered
The race for an open seat on the Benton County Commission is headed for a mandatory machine recount to determine who will face Michael Alvarez in the general election.
William “Bill” Jenkin currently has a 33-vote lead — about 0.21% of the total vote — over Barry Bush after two weeks of counting since the Aug. 2 primary election.
The election was certified on Tuesday. But the distance for second place is so narrow between the two.
Washington state law requires a mandatory machine recount when the difference is less than 2,000 votes and less than half a percentage point.
Alvarez has the most votes with 7,559. Jenkin received 4,145 and Bush had 4,112. All three are Republicans.
Including 177 write-in votes, a total of 15,993 votes were cast in the election.
The recount, which is expected to take less than a day, will start at 9 a.m. Monday, Aug. 22, at the Benton County Voting Center on Columbia Center Boulevard in Kennewick.
After that, the election will be re-certified with any amended results on Aug. 23.
Only the two candidates with the most votes can move on to the Nov. 8 general election.
Current District 2 county Commissioner Shon Small did not file for re-election after serving three terms.
Alvarez is the current mayor of Richland, Jenkin is a former Washington state lawmaker who represented parts of the Tri-Cities in the Legislature, and Bush is a current Benton County PUD commissioner.
