King County Prop. 1 easily passing; other measures leading except in Covington

SEATTLE -- King County Proposition 1 to impose a property tax levy for an emergency public safety radio replacement project was easily passing by a 65-35% margin Tuesday night, election results showed.

Ballots that were dropped off by 8 p.m. Tuesday or that had a postmark no later than Tuesday will continue to be counted.

But the difference in the initial vote results released Tuesday night made it likely that King County Prop. 1 would be approved.

King County Elections said Tuesday night's count showed that 162,458 (65%) voters cast ballots for the proposition and 87,527 (35%) cast votes against it. Only a simple majority is needed for approval.  A turnout of 33% is expected in this election.

King County Executive Dow Constantine issued a statement Tuesday night thanking King County voters for their 65-percent approval of funding for a new emergency radio network for first responders:

“A reliable emergency radio network is the lifeline that keeps all of our communities safe, used thousands of times a day by police, firefighters and medics in every corner of our county.

“I want to thank the voters of King County for acknowledging the need to replace a dangerously outdated system and ensuring that our first responders have the tools they need to communicate during life-threatening emergencies.”

All other measures on the ballots in King County jurisdictions were passing with the exception of Covington's proposed sale and use tax for transportation improvements.

Initial returns showed the Covington sale and use tax measure was losing 53-47%. But the returns were small, with 1,206 voting against it and 1,058 voting for it.

>>> Here's a link to see all of the election results in King County.

>>> Here's a link to Snohomish County election results