Mitchell Merrill, a Republican, is in the driver’s seat so far in the race to become Lewis County auditor after receiving support from a majority of the first ballots tallied in the county during the general election on Tuesday night.
The Lewis County Auditor's Office posted the first batch of preliminary results for the general election in which Merrill had received 58.58% (16,259 votes) of the vote so far. His competition, Mossyrock School Board Chair Mitch Townsend, received 38.91% (10,799 votes). Townsend is also a Republican.
Lewis County has a history of long-tenured auditors, including current Auditor Larry Grove, who was elected to the office in 2014 and was first employed by the county in 1989.
Grove, who is retiring at the end of his term, endorsed Merrill in the race, as did his predecessor, former Auditor Gary Zandell.
This race has been a realtively exciting part of recent debates as the two candidates have offered very different views of the office. While Merrill has campaigned on a platform of taking over the reins from a responsible auditor’s administration that has served well, Townsend has repeatedly declared it is time for change in the auditor’s office and has raised concerns with election security in Lewis County.
The auditor’s office is, among other responsibilities, in charge of administering elections in Lewis County.
During the race, Merrill has pointed to his qualifications shared by other auditors, including Grove. Merrill is a certified public accountant (CPA) and has already directed audits for public agencies.
Townsend has taken another tact, describing the auditor’s office as an executive leadership role and stressing that CPA certification is not a necessary requirement for the job. He has touted his own experience in a leadership role with the Mossrock School Board as well as time in the U.S. armed services and his business experience.
Tuesday’s tally is preliminary. Updated ballot counts will be provided by the auditor’s office in the days ahead. The election will be certified by the Washington secretary of state by Dec. 3.
