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POSTED: Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008

Snyder keeps Whatcom County Superior Court judge seat

BELLINGHAM - Chuck Snyder will retain his seat as a Whatcom County Superior Court judge after preliminary election results showed him with a commanding lead in the Tuesday, Aug. 19, election.

Challenger Doug Shepherd admitted he'd lost after the first results were released just after 8:30 p.m.

Initial results showed Snyder received 65 percent of the 23,813 votes counted, to Shepherd's 35 percent.

"I don't know what the turnout is going to be, but right now my chances are pretty good," said Snyder, 55, awaiting updated results with supporters at his Bellingham campaign headquarters. "I'm confident, but I'm just enough of a realist to wait and see what the rest of the results show."

When there are only two candidates in a judicial race, state law mandates that superior court judges are elected during the primary if they receive more than half the votes.

Of three Whatcom County Superior Court judges, Snyder was the only one who faced a challenger in this election.

Whatcom County Auditor's Office elections supervisor Pete Griffin said usually fewer people vote in judicial races than in more high-profile races. Still, nearly 24,000 of the 27,562 ballots contained a vote for one of the candidates.

Snyder's campaign raised $33,461 and spent $29,915, according to the Washington Public Disclosure Commission's Web site on Tuesday. By comparison, Shepherd raised $40,550 and spent $17,445, according to the site. The numbers may not reflect recent spending.

Snyder, who emphasized during his campaign the court's obligation to lobby the legislative and executive branches for court funding, was first elected to the four-year position in 2004, after serving as Whatcom County Court commissioner from 1989 to 2004.

Snyder presides over Whatcom County's Drug Court, a program specific to drug-addicted offenders. Snyder was also instrumental in creating Whatcom County's Teen Court, a program in which teens serve as judge, jury, prosecutor and defense for juvenile offenders.

Shepherd, 66, emphasized during his campaign his nearly 30 years of experience as a private attorney. He has been practicing primarily as a commercial obligation and personal injury lawyer in Bellingham for eight years.

"It's been a fun process," Shepherd said after hearing the initial results Tuesday. "I learned a lot and I appreciate everyone who supported me."

Reach Cat Sieh at cat.sieh@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2236.