Treece Leads Fai With 51.5% of Votes in Washington County Race

Pam Treece held a 51.5 percent share of the vote for the Washington County Board of Commissioners chair seat at 10 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Nafisa Fai followed with 47.6 percent. The gap between the two candidates narrowed compared to the 8 p.m. tally, indicating a closer final count than earlier projections suggested.

The position is for an at-large commissioner who will lead the five-person governing board for the entire county. Both candidates advanced to this general election after failing to secure a majority in the May 19 primary. Fai received 39.1 percent of the primary vote, while Treece received 33.1 percent.

Treece reacted to the initial data with cautious optimism. “So far, looks good,” she said. “Election results, they’re early still but I’m feeling very positive about what we’ve seen so far and I’m waiting to see the 10 p.m. results.” Fai did not immediately respond to a request for comment from reporters.

The race follows a contentious year for the board. Chair Kathryn Harrington resigned this fall after deciding not to seek reelection. Her departure followed a public work session where she made an obscene gesture toward Fai. The incident marked a turning point in the relationship between the two long-time county officials.

Recent campaign activity included a dispute over a deepfake report. Fai recently denied sending a manipulated image that supported a retracted claim about her being a victim of such a video. The original controversy involved footage of her speaking in front of an upside-down American flag at an Oct. 10 event in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Voter turnout stood at 34.7 percent as of the 10 p.m. update, though not all ballots had been tabulated. Oregon law allows ballots postmarked on Election Day to be counted if received within the following week. Officials will certify the final results by Nov. 30.