Split in Grant County Commissioners race

Allison re-elected, Snead voted out of office

EPHRATA — LeRoy Allison will continue to serve as a Grant County Commissioner for District 2, following election results Tuesday evening.

District 1 Commissioner Tim Snead however was voted out of office, and will be replaced on the commission by challenger Richard Stevens.

Both winners were decided by double digit percentage leads. Preliminary results indicated Stevens received 56.92 percent of the vote to Snead's 43.08 percent. Allison beat out challenger Ritchie Norman with 68.25 percent of the vote to Norman's 31.75 percent.

The Republican Allison defeated Democratic challenger Norman with a preliminary total of 14,388 votes to 6,693 votes, and will serve a fourth term on the commission.

"I was hoping for a decisive win like this, especially after a close primary," Allison said Tuesday night . Allison did say the county does have some challenges in the next few years, particularly balancing the

county's budget.

The Warden resident said Tuesday's election had also had been a good one for the Republican ticket as well.

Norman, of Moses Lake, said that he had ran a personal campaign and thanked the voters of Grant County. Norman also said he felt he learned quite a bit, and the campaign was not a loss for him but a gain.

He said if he had gotten into office he would have been a hands-on commissioner, and added that the commissioners have not made themselves available to the public.

In the county's other commission race, Republican challenger Stevens defeated incumbent District 1 Commissioner Snead. Stevens garnered 12,277 votes to Snead's 9,293.

Snead has spent the last 12 years on the commission, and said each of his commission races has been a tight one.

"I was disappointed, but I wanted to thank everyone who supported me, and with Richard Stevens all the best and good luck," Snead said Wednesday morning.

Stevens was not available for comment following the election. Stevens will join Allison on the commission, along with District 3 Commissioner Deborah Moore.

Neither Stevens or Snead faced an opponent in September's primary election.