Sawant Takes Lead Against Recall In Third Ballot Drop

SEATTLE — Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant took a narrow lead Thursday in a hotly contested recall effort, overcoming a six-point election night deficit as "no" votes pulled ahead by fewer than 250 votes.

The Recall Sawant campaign alleged "misfeasance, malfeasance and violation of the oath of office" and levied three specific charges on the ballot. Sawant and her supporters criticized the recall as backed by conservatives and accused the campaign of purposefully holding on to signatures long enough to miss general election deadlines and require an unusual December election, nestled between two major holidays.

After trailing by 2,000 votes on Tuesday, Sawant made up considerable ground Wednesday before flipping the race Thursday with a third round of results that added the remaining 1,355 ballots to the tally.

Kshama Sawant Recall Results - Updated Dec. 9, 2021

• Recall No: 50.29% (20,415 votes)
• Recall Yes: 49.71% (20,183 votes)

However, the race is not over, and nearly 600 ballots are flagged for signature issues that need to be resolved before they will count.

Voters have until Dec. 16 to correct challenged ballots. Ballots that are successfully "cured" will be added to the official tally over the next week before the final results are certified on Dec. 17. Unlike other local races, razor-thin recalls are not subject to mandatory recounts, since they are classified as ballot measures. Either party can request a voluntary recount, but would be fully responsible for the cost, officials said.

Voter turnout for the unusual December election surpassed projections, landing at 52.4 percent after Thursday's ballot drop. In stark contrast to the general election, voters ages 25 to 34 represented the largest single voting group.