Yeager, Bartlett lead Ritzville mayoral race

RITZVILLE - Two prominent residents are dominating the race to be the next mayor.

At the end of counting primary election ballots Tuesday night, Aug. 1, Scott Yaeger had 202 votes, or 50.5% of the ballots cast.

In a distant second, local businessman Corey W. Bartlett had 104 votes, or 26%.

The two men are leading the race to advance to the Nov. 7 general election.

Jack Curtis was third with 64 votes, or 16.0%; and Glen Stockwell and Keanu Niezwaag were tied for fourth with 14 votes each, or 3.50%.

The Adams County Auditor's Office recorded two write-ins, one over-vote and three under-votes; not enough to change the outcome of the race.

Only the Top 2 advance to the general election.

And while Yaeger has a commanding lead, the race isn't over.

Late-arriving ballots have yet to be counted and voter turnout, so far, was an estimated 34.74%.

There are 1,163 registered voters eligible to cast ballots, the Auditor's Office reported. That means another 763 ballots could still be counted if they were returned on or before 8 p.m. Tuesday night.

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Roger Harnack, Publisher

Roger Harnack is owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. An award-winning journalist, photographer, editor and publisher who grew up in Eastern Washington, he's one of only two Washington state journalists ever to receive the international Golden Quill for editorial/commentary writing. Roger is committed to preserving local media, and along with it, a local voice for Eastern Washington.

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