Challenger Michael Maddux gained more ground over Jean Godden Wednesday evening, increasing the odds that the longtime council member's days in office are numbered.
Maddux, who held a 180 vote lead over Godden after Tuesday's primary, stretched that gap to 269 Wednesday afternoon, giving him more than a two percentage point advantage. The approximately 2,000 additional ballots tallied Wednesday for District 4 broke heavily for frontrunner Rob Johnson and were spread relatively evenly between Maddux, Godden and the fourth and fifth place finishers, Tony Provine and Abel Pacheco.
"Well, of course it’s not very encouraging," Godden told Crosscut Wednesday. "Therefore we’re very disappointed. But it’s not over until it’s over."
When asked whether she thought her age, 83, might have been a factor in a race featuring many younger opponents, she said, "Well, I don't feel particularly old. People make those decisions, so I can’t hold it against them. People see I’m a woman and that I've been around for a while also."
She expressed no regrets for running for another term. "When you feel there are things to be done, you need to get them done," she said. "Being a city council member has been the honor of my life."
Although District 4 has been a tight race, all of the opponents have been exceedingly cordial to one another. “I thank Jean Godden for all her years of service to this community," Maddux told Crosscut last night. "She has done some great stuff on the City Council. She is somebody who has served our community for the last twelve years, and she should be thanked for her service.”
As more ballots trickle in, King County will update the results again tomorrow at 4:30 PM. Although 269 votes sounds like a small number, Maddux seems to be benefiting from the late deciders, which is bad news for Godden.
If the numbers hold, Maddux and Johnson, who apparently carpool together to campaign events, will face off next November.
