It can now be said that every vote does count. A one vote victory on election night for the city of Chelan Transportation Benefit District sales tax issue, but subsequent vote counts had the measure being defeated by 25 votes, until the latest stack of ballots were counted.
"There was another drop of ballots, and now we're at five votes difference between yes and no," said Chelan Mayor Erin McCardle.
Chelan County Auditor Skip Moore says about 200 ballots have yet to be counted from voters countywide. He's unsure how many of the remaining ballots are from within the Chelan Transportation Benefit District.
"Whenever we handles (financial) measures to the public, those do not fall under the statute of mandatory recounts," Moore noted. "There specifically left out of state law, but it does give the opportunity for five registered voters within the jurisdiction, they can file an application calling for a recount. They would have to put a deposit down, determined by whether they wanted a machine or manual recount."
The Auditor charges $350 for a machine recount and a manual recount would cost approximately $580.
So far, 2,313 people have cast ballots on the proposal for a three-tenths of one-percent sales tax increase to generate an estimated $900,000 annually for street and sidewalk improvements. Some of that revenue would be paid by Chelan tourists.
At last count, the tax increase is being rejected 1,159-to-1,154. Moore says the final ballots will be counted just before the official certification of the general election at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.
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