PORT TOWNSEND — The race for the Jefferson County Hospital District commissioner position 4 is too close to call, Jefferson County Auditor Donna Eldridge said.
Incumbent Kathy Hill, 64, of Port Townsend had 4,524 votes, or 49.33 percent, to challenger Mari Dressler’s 4,592 votes, or 50.08 percent, in the initial count of general election votes Tuesday.
“Oh wow, that is close,” Eldridge said.
Hill is a weight coach with Weight Watchers of North America, and has served on the hospital commission for 20 years.
Dressler, 63, of Port Townsend, is a retired registered nurse.
Eldridge’s office counted votes in 11,985 ballots returned out of 21,983 mailed.
She said about 600 additional ballots were left to count, and that she expected about 1,000 votes to arrive by mail on Wednesday.
The next count of ballots will be at noon Thursday.
Hill was unavailable for comment Tuesday night.
Dressler, who was at the office awaiting results, said the too-close-to-call election, “exciting.”
“It really is,” she said. “We are neck-and-neck right now, so we will have to wait and see.
“I’m actually very humbled that people have come out and supported me.
“I’ve never run for office before, so I didn’t know what to expect.”
In her attempt to unseat Hill, Dressler, spent more than $3,000 of her own money in her campaign.
During a candidate forum in October, the two candidates sparred over access to health care. Dressler said she wanted to improve access and diversify practices while Hill argued that the commission had taken great steps in improving access to local health care services.
Hill also said she hopes to continuing to lobby for Jefferson County’s small, rural hospital on a national level while Dressler said she hopes to continue her career in health care by becoming an advocate, not just for patients, but for all of Jefferson County.
The hospital commission position is a six-year term.
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Reporter Erik Hidle can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at erik.hidle@peninsuladailynews.com.