Hague Leads, Mitchell Holds Narrow Second-Place in King County Primary Race

Incumbent King County Councilwoman Jane Hague of Bellevue got 39 percent of the vote in the first count of primary ballots Tuesday night, which puts her well into the lead in early returns in the four-way primary to represent King County Council District 6.

Challenger Richard Mitchell, a Mercer Island attorney and King County Housing Authority Commissioner, got 27 percent of the vote, followed closely by Seattle Port Commissioner John Creighton of Kirkland, who got about 25 percent of the vote.

However, Creighton trails Mitchell by 625 votes -- about half a percent of all registered voters in King County Council District 6, with many votes still to be counted. The next vote total update will be Wednesday at 4:30 p.m., according to the county.

"I feel good about this campaign. People know me and can see the things I believe in – working across the aisle for solutions, standing up for the Eastside," Hague said in a prepared statement. "My track record shows that I’ve focused on the issues, not mudslinging.  I’ve also dedicated myself to making the Eastside and King County a better place to live and do business."

In the primary, the two candidates with the most support will go on to face each other in the general election in November. Only races with more than two candidates were on the primary ballot.

King County Counci district 6 includes Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Mercer Island, Medina, Clyde Hill, Hunts Point, Beaux Arts, and Yarrow Point. The seat on the council is a non-partisan elected position.

Former Bellevue Councilwoman Patsy Bonincontri was a distant fourth, with 7 percent of the votes counted by Tuesday night.

According to King County Elections, 24,517 out of 121,139 ballots for the race were tallied as of Tuesday night. Countywide, the vote-counters are expecting about 52 percent of ballots will be returned. The next update will be at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

The county council position makes $131,578 for 2011, according to the county.