Washougal Mayoral Race: Coston Campaign 'Cautiously Optimistic'

Washougal, WA — The Washougal city mayoral race between Molly Coston and Dan Coursey didn’t have a definitive ending on election night with neither candidate claiming victory or conceding the surprisingly dramatic race.

Early results from the Clark County Elections Office show Coston with 1,091 votes (54.31%), Coursey with 848 votes (42.21%), and write-in Paul Godin with 70 votes (3.48%). Total vote count to-date is 2,009. Two-hundred-forty-eight votes separate Coursey and Coston.

Tuesday’s official results don’t factor ballots mailed in or dropped off on election day.

Coston campaign surrogate and Washougal city councilman, Brent Boger, is claiming victory for his preferred candidate. “It’s a solid win for Washougal,” he said. “Molly has the experience. When she took over briefly for Stacy Sellars as temporary mayor she handled the job very well. She fit in extremely well.”

State Representative Liz Pike, and Coursey supporter, has a different perspective.

“Only 248 votes separate the two candidates,” she said. “Republicans typically wait to send in their ballots, and those numbers will be reflected on Wednesday with the next update, and then with Thursday’s update. It’s not over.”

From left: City councilman Dan Coursey, Neil Cahoon, Ray Kuta, and State Representative Liz Pike.

When official numbers were made public after 8 pm Tuesday the Coursey camp was still optimistic.

“I thought the campaign would be a quiet affair,” said Coursey. “I didn’t know this would be so loud. I’m so glad all my friends stuck with me. I’ve knocked on over 3,000 doors, and each family has a different story. I’ve enjoyed getting to know the people of Washougal.”

Coston filed to run at the last possible moment, and she said the race has been a challenging one.

“I jumped in with both feet,” Coston said. “I had a team that pushed me; that mentored me, and I really enjoyed door knocking. That was my stress reliever. I really loved talking to everyone. I’ve watched politics for a long time, and I really felt this was the right time to get in. Right now, we’re cautiously optimistic.”

Each candidate spelled out what they’ll do first if elected, and we’ll post those plans when a winner is officially declared.

Julie Russell won her Washougal city council race against Adam Philbin, 55.7% to 44.3%.

“I’m very honored the voters of Washougal voted for me,” Russell said. “I’m happy to work with whoever is elected to make this a better community.”

Camas Election Night Results

Melissa Smith defeated her opponent, Emilia Brasier, for Camas city council.
Steven Hogan won his race for Camas city council. He ran unopposed.
Shannon Turk won her race for Camas city council. She ran unopposed.
Casey O’Dell won re-election to the Camas School Board. He ran unopposed.
Julie Rotz won her race for Camas School Board. She ran unopposed.
Tracey Malon won her race for Camas School Board. She ran unopposed.
John Spencer won his race against Mark Forbes for Port of Camas-Washougal Commissioner.
Larry Kessler won his race against Adam Parsley for Port of Camas-Washougal Commissioner.