The race for North Eugene’s county commissioner is anything but over. Dragging on, this race is shaping up to be one of the longest duels in the state, as the Eugene mayoral race ended Thursday night and a few other prominent statewide races are finally over as well.
Incumbent commissioner Bobby Green trailed newcomer Rob Handy by a mere 236 votes Thursday evening when Lane County Election officials stopped counting votes for the night. The next vote count will be released today at 5 p.m.
Handy’s campaign feels confident, as it has held a lead throughout the entire race from the May primary victory through this Thursday’s count, but is staying cautious.
“We’re not quite ready to declare a victory, but we’re optimistic,” said Handy’s campaign manager, Phyllis Barkhurst.
There are approximately 3,000 votes uncounted, and with such a small discrepancy between candidates, the Green camp feels there is still time to hold out for a victory.
With fewer and fewer votes to count, the 200-vote margin becomes harder to overcome, but every vote deserves to be counted fairly, Green’s Campaign Manager Mike Clark said.
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