Now on to the general election

Preliminary August 1 primary election results give insight into what is to come for the November 2023 general election, including the Whatcom County Executive race, where incumbent Satpal Sidhu and Dan Purdy were the top two finishers and will face each other in the general election.

The two candidates who receive the most votes in each race in the August primary move onto the November 7 election. The following results were certified on August 15:

Six candidates vied for the county executive seat in the primary. Sidhu, who is finishing his first four-year term as executive, led the race with 34.8 percent. Dan Purdy, a first-time candidate with business leadership experience, followed in second place with 27.7 percent of the votes. State representative Alicia Rule received 17.6 percent, county council chair Barry Buchanan received 13.9 percent, Misty Flowers received 3.2 percent and Sukhwant Gill received 2.5 percent of votes.

The Blaine school board race shows Ben Lazarus, former owner of Westwind Marine in Point Roberts, received 43.8 percent of the votes. Dean Berkeley, a former North Whatcom Fire and Rescue commissioner, placed second at 32.8 percent. Tana Perkins Reneau, who was charged with nearly a dozen counts of child abuse in June, received 22.7 percent, or 1,112 votes.

For the Whatcom County Council At Large Position B, Jon Scanlon, who has 20 years of public policy and diplomacy experience, lead at 37.4 percent. Hannah Ordos, a customer support manager, placed second with 30.7 percent. Atul Deshmane received 22.9 percent and Jerry Burns received 9.2 percent of the votes.

Another race up for election was Whatcom County Council District 4, which represents east of Blaine, north Whatcom County west of I-5 and the greater Lynden area. Mark Stremler, a first-time candidate and Whatcom County Public Works employee, came in first over incumbent Kathy Kershner, 46.1 percent to 43.4 percent. Katherine Orlowski received 10.1 percent of votes.

Turnout totaled 36.1 percent of registered Whatcom County voters according to the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office. A total 57,786 ballots were tabulated.

Voters will be faced with more races in the November election that were not included in the primary because they only had two candidates. Contested positions up for election will cover Blaine school board, Blaine City Council, Whatcom County Sheriff and Whatcom County Council District 5, which represents the Point Roberts, Blaine and Birch Bay area.