LAKE COUNTY — Polling places are ready for voters throughout Lake County to make their mark today in the primary election. The county supervisor seats up for grabs include Districts 1, 4 and 5.
Approximately 15 percent of Lake County”s registered voters had cast their votes by Monday using vote-by-mail ballots sent out in May, according to Lake County Registrar of Voters Diane Fridley. Of the county”s 33,143 registered voters, 15,597 received ballots in the mail. Less than a third had returned them as of Monday, according to Fridley.
“There are usually quite a few (ballots) turned in at polling places on Election Day. This is a unique election because it is the first election in a presidential election year without a presidential candidate,” Fridley said.
The county”s 19 voting polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Vote-by-mail voters can drop off a ballot at any polling place, according to Fridley. For information about registration or where to vote, call the Registrar of Voters office at 263-2372. Voters can also turn in a ballot over the counter at the Registrar of Voters office on the second floor of the Lake County Courthouse in Lakeport.
Six candidates are vying for the Dist. 1 Supervisor seat, including Jim Comstock, Don Dornbush, Scott Fergusson, Susanne La Faver, Joey Luiz and Robert MacIntyre. District 1 includes the communities of Middletown, Hidden Valley, Cobb, Lower Lake and a portion of the City of Clearlake.
The race could be decided when today”s votes are counted, but Fridley said it will likely come down to a run-off between two candidates. To win in the primary, a candidate needs 50 percent of the total votes plus one vote, according to Fridley. If one candidate does not get the majority of the vote, the two candidates with the highest number of the votes will run-off in November.
After today”s election, either incumbent Rob Brown or challenger Robert Stark will emerge victorious in the race for Dist. 5 Supervisor. District 5 includes Kelseyville, Clear Lake Rivieras, Buckingham, Loch Lomond, and parts of the Cobb Mountain area.
Results will be available tonight on the County of Lake”s Web site, www.co.lake.ca.us. Results are updated as votes come in from the polls and are counted.
District 4 Supervisor Anthony Farrington is unopposed. His name appears on the ballot for Dist. 4 voters in Lakeport, which includes Scotts Valley, Finley, the Lampson Airport area, Highland Springs and part of the reclamation area near Upper Lake.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com.
