Preliminary November 4 election results are in, and with it are many big changes coming to Blaine and Whatcom County.
The Blaine elections saw some of the most contentious races in recent years, with candidates battling for Blaine City Council as the city navigates balancing budget woes and shaping future development. Voters appeared to green light de-annexing the Grandis Pond property in east Blaine, which will determine where the city adds housing.
The Port of Bellingham will also have major changes as voters approved expanding the commission from three to five members, bringing a handful of representatives to the port for the first time since 1920. The commission race for District 2 was also heated, with business owner Carly James narrowly ahead of incumbent Ken Bell.
In addition to Blaine’s council and the port, local voters had the opportunity to shake up governing bodies, including Blaine school board and Whatcom County Council.
Voters were also tasked with deciding 12 measures that were part of a decennial review of the county code from the Whatcom County Charter Review Commission that will result in tighter oversight of the county.
About 36 percent of Whatcom County voters submitted ballots. The Whatcom County Auditor’s Office estimated 11,700 of those returned ballots were still left to count.
Below is the November 5 ballot count, the latest election results as of press time. For updated results ahead of the November 25 election certification, visit bit.ly/3LKIQa1.
With future development in mind, the city of Blaine introduced a ballot measure asking voters whether they would like to de-annex 573 acres of incorporated urban growth area (UGA) in east Blaine, most of which encompasses the Grandis Pond property. Early results show the measure, Proposition 2025-07, passed the 60 percent supermajority threshold needed with 65 percent of voters in support.
City staff had planned on attempting to add unincorporated UGA near Semiahmoo and Birch Point, where it believes is one of the city’s only options for housing growth, but that plan may be in question as Whatcom County Council has recently indicated it is against the proposal. Blaine planning director Alex Wenger did not respond to a request for comment immediately, but city staff has said it will discuss the UGA plan during its next council meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, November 10 at City Hall.
Blaine planners have said Blaine is likely one of the first in the state to try de-annexing this much land. East Blaine has been slated to provide the majority of the city’s future housing stock since being annexed in the ’90s, but costly infrastructure has lagged the development for over 20 years. The city pulled the trigger on finding a new option last fall after new Grandis Pond owners created additional uncertainty for the land’s development (they have since indicated they would like to develop the property but with fewer houses).
One of the most watched races for Blaine City Council was the fight between appointed incumbent Eric Lewis and Jiggy Sorrell for Ward 1 Position 2. Sorrell took the lead in a close call, with 52.5 percent of voter backing. Sorrell has become an active community member over the past couple of years, as a director of programs for a nonprofit helping local children and serving on committees aimed at improving Drayton Harbor and Blaine Harbor. Lewis, who championed being a voice for Blaine residents, was the center of controversy earlier this fall after the mayor requested he resign from council for emails that staff believed could have violated the state’s appearance of fairness doctrine, potentially putting the city at financial and legal risk.
Software developer Isaac Newland came out as a clear winner in the Ward 2 Position 4 race, receiving 62.5 percent of support, while his opponent retired nurse Ray Leone received 37.5 percent.
Don Enos, a Blaine planning commissioner and real estate agent, was elected to Blaine City Council’s Ward 3 Position 6 seat by a wide margin of 63.3 percent. Enos’ opponent, former city councilor and business owner Sukhwant Gill, received 36.2 percent of the votes.
The final city council race, the At-Large Position 7 seat, was technically contested between appointed incumbent and business owner Sarbie Bains and former councilor Mike Hill, though Hill had dropped out of the race after ballots were printed. Bains received 78.7 percent of support, while Hill, who wrote on the voters’ pamphlet that he did not want to be elected, still received 19.5 percent of votes. There were 26 write-in votes that made up 1.8 percent of voters.
The Port of Bellingham’s commission will make room for two new seats at the table as voters were largely in support of Proposition 2025-04, which will expand the commission from three to five members and create new commission districts. Voters overwhelming surpassed the 51 percent simple majority threshold with a 64.9 percent approval, turning the tide from the last time the measure went before voters in 2012.
Proponents of the port expansion have said it will improve communication among commissioners as it allows two members to discuss port business outside of meetings, something state law doesn’t allow with only three commissioners.
Port staff have said they would draw five districts by January and races for the two new seats would be included in the August 2026 primary. The new commissioners would then take office as soon as election results are certified in November 2026.
The new port candidate with the highest number of voters would serve three years, while the candidate with the second highest votes would only serve for one year. Those commissioners would be elected in odd numbered years, which is in line with the port’s current election cycle. Voters of the entire district would elect the new commissioners.
The Port of Bellingham race between incumbent Ken Bell and Bellingham businesswoman Carly James for its District 2 was a squeaker, with Bell behind at 49.8 percent (28,159 votes) and James 96 votes ahead with 49.9 percent (28,255 votes). The race was the only contested one for the port and followed over a year of controversial decisions on development and removal of leadership positions from port commissions that drew public criticism.
The other port race, District 1, was uncontested with incumbent Michael Shepard receiving 40,455 votes. Write-in ballots tallied 766, or 1.8 percent.
The Blaine school board will soon have new faces with the election of Bob Feaster in District 3 and Chelsey Belarmino in District 5.
Feaster, an experienced educator, came out ahead in his race against cybersecurity engineer Jim Shaver, winning 61.8 percent to 37.4 percent. Feaster has 35 years’ experience in public education that includes serving as an assistant superintendent. He is the interim coordinator for the district’s Family Service Center.
Belarmino, a preschool and kindergarten teacher, ran unopposed for the District 5 position.
Whatcom County Council will also have new input in the coming year with two of the four council races bringing new members.
The At-Large Position A seat, which represents the entire county, saw incumbent Barry Buchanan win another term against community activist Misty Flowers, who has previous vied for the seat. Buchanan received 63.2 percent of votes, while Flowers earned 36.6 percent.
Incumbent Kaylee Galloway ran unopposed for her District 1 seat. As for the other two contested county council races, Elizabeth Boyle won District 2 with 72.4 percent against Maya Morales, and Jessica Rienstra appeared the likely winner for District 3. Rienstra received 57 percent support, while opponent Kyle Christensen had 43 percent.
Birch Bay Water and Sewer District had one seat to fill in this year’s race that voters have decided will go to Joan Connell. Connell came out on top with 72.6 percent, while John Schindler received 26.8 percent. Connell is a media consultant and journalist who has served on the Salish Breeze homeowners association.
Blaine-Birch Bay Park and Recreation District 2 incumbents Sheli Moore and Billy Brown didn’t have to put up much of a fight in the uncontested races to retain their seats for positions 2 and 4. Moore is a bookkeeper involved in the Salishan Neighborhood Association and Brown is a real estate agent and former president of the Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce. Both received about 98 percent of votes.
North Whatcom Fire and Rescue, officially known on ballots as Fire Protection District 21, had one unopposed seat up for grabs. Appointed incumbent Craig Anthony earned 99 percent of voter support. Anthony is a Blaine resident and former deputy director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The Whatcom County Charter Review Commission, a 15-member group that convenes every 10 years to review the county code, put forward 12 propositions on county government, some of which passed and others that were nixed by voters.
• Proposition 1, authorizing county councilmembers to hire legislative aides, was rejected by 63.6 percent.
• Proposition 2, establishing a Whatcom County Office of the Ombuds to investigate complaints and inquiries into county government, was rejected at the first ballot count by 52 percent, or 30,320 voters. The proposition received 48 percent approval from 27,950 voters.
• Proposition 3, creating performance audits, was approved by a whooping 85 percent.
• Proposition 4, clarifying the powers and duties of county elected officials, was also passed with an overwhelming 92 percent of support.
• Proposition 5, amending Whatcom County’s redistricting process to better comply with state law and require a public hearing, was approved with 79 percent.
• Proposition 6, adjusting the calculation of signatures required to place a referendum on ballots, was being rejected at the second ballot count with 52.4 percent, or 30,278 voters, against it. The proposition had 48 percent, or 27,563 voters, in support.
• Proposition 7, prohibiting the county government from interfering with initiatives or charter amendments, passed with 60.3 percent in support.
• Proposition 8, requiring more public disclosure requirements upon the county executive prior to approving budgets, was approved with 93.2 percent of support.
• Proposition 9, which added accountability to financial reporting requirements, was approved with 93.2 percent support.
• Proposition 10, creating rules of procedure for charter review commission meetings, passed by 84.2 percent.
• Proposition 11, adjusting the calculation of signatures required to place a charter amendment on ballots, looked like it would be rejected as it had 59.6 percent of voters against it.
• Proposition 12, requiring the county executive to publish an analysis of how new legislation could affect land supply and construction costs, passed by 87 percent.
The lone state measure, Senate Joint Resolution No. 8201, appeared on track for approval, with 56.7 percent of state voters in support and 44 percent against.
The measure would approve a constitutional amendment that the state legislature proposed allowing taxpayer money in the state’s long-term care fund to be invested.
Whatcom County voters closely mirrored the statewide sentiment, with 61 percent of county voters in support of the measure.
