Merritt takes lead in Tacoma mayoral primary election; Woodards holding 2nd place

TACOMA -- Architect and urban designer Jim Merritt and  former Tacoma City Council member Victoria Woodards were leading in the primary election for Tacoma mayor Tuesday night.

Merritt had 41.48% of the vote, while Woodards had 35.69%.  The third candidate,  Evelyn Lopez, had 22.54%.

The top two finishers in the primary will face off in the November general election.

These are just the initial vote counts. Ballots with a postmark of up to Aug. 1 will continued to be counted.

More results are expected to be released Wednesday.

For other election returns, click on this link:   http://results.vote.wa.gov/results/current/Turnout.html