By Pat Jenkins The Dispatch The election of Donald Trump as the nation’s next president wasn’t the idea of the majority of voters who cast ballots in Pierce County, where 48 percent sided with Hillary Clinton and 41 percent were for the president-elect. That was in step with the rest of Washington. Fifty-four percent of voters statewide favored Clinton. Majorities of Pierce County and Washington voters also voted the same way on nearly every statewide contest in the general election, with results to their liking. They supported the winners in races for U.S. senator (Patty Murray), governor (Jay Inslee), and six other state offices. There were two exceptions in which Pierce voters parted ways with statewide majorities. Pierce favored Steve McLaughlin for commissioner of public lands and Erin Jones for superintendent of public instruction. The state as a whole picked Hillary Franz and Chris Reykdahl, who were headed toward victory over McLaughlin and Jones, respectively, in vote tabulations late last week. Pierce County voters also took a different path on Sound Transit’s three-county ballot measure requesting $54 billion in projects to be paid for through taxes. Fifty-six percent of the votes in Pierce were against it. But it got enough yes votes in King County (57.8 percent) and Snohomish County (51 percent) to pass, authorizing the transit agency to go forward with plans for expanding light rail and making other improvements of mass transit. To take effect, the proposal needs an overall approval of voters in the region, not county by county. Pierce County apparently will look back on a 73 percent turnout of its voters for the general election. Through last, 53 percent of the 262,936 ballots received by the county elections department had been counted. The unofficial Pierce County results and statewide results include: • President: 48.8 percent Clinton, Democrat, 41 percent Trump, 5 percent Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson (state 54 percent Clinton, 38 percent Trump, 4 percent Johnson). • U.S. senator: 55.7 percent Patty Murray, Democrat (state 59 percent). • Governor: Jay Inslee, Democrat, 50 percent (55 percent state). • Lieutenant governor: 50.4 percent Cyrus Habib, Democrat (54 percent state). Secretary of state: 58.5 percent Kim Wyman, Republican, (54 percent state) Treasurer: 55.6 percent Duane Davidson (58 percent state) Auditor: 51 percent Pat McCarthy, Democrat (52 percent state) Attorney general: 64 percent Bob Ferguson, Democrat (68 percent state) Commissioner of public lands: Steve McLaughlin, Republican, 50.4 percent (Hillary Franz, Democrat, 53 percent state) Superintendent of public instruction: 51.5 percent Erin Jones (Chris Reykdal 50.8 percent state)
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