Houston and Palmer city council races too close to call after Tuesday’s election

What you need to know:

• Voters in Palmer, Houston and Wasilla cast ballots for city council seats in their annual elections Tuesday, with results in several races too close to call following the release of preliminary results.
• In Houston, Wayne Oliver led incumbent council member and Mayor Carter Cole by a single vote, with more than 100 write-in ballots still to be counted in the race for council Seat G. In Palmer, where voters choose two candidates from a list, incumbent John Alcantra and newcomer Victoria Hudson were leading, with more than 100 absentee, early and write-in votes still to be counted. Candidates in Wasilla ran uncontested.
• Vote totals will be updated by the end of the week and certified next week in Houston and Palmer, and later this month in Wasilla.

PALMER — Residents in three Mat-Su cities cast ballots for city council members Tuesday, with races in Houston and Palmer too close to call following the release of preliminary results, which do not include early or absentee votes.

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough's three cities — Palmer, Wasilla, and Houston — hold elections annually on the first Tuesday in October. Borough-wide elections, including assembly and school board races, are held in November in conjunction with statewide and national elections.

In Houston, Wayne Oliver led incumbent Council Member and Mayor Carter Cole 92-91 for Seat C, according to results released late Tuesday.

In the Houston Seat G council race, incumbent Laurie Faubert had 72 votes, with 105 write-in votes yet to be counted. In the Seat D race, incumbent Kent Mitchell was leading 110-65 over write-in candidates. More than 90 early and absentee votes remain to be counted.

Houston voters do not elect a mayor. Instead, city council members annually select the mayor from among themselves. The council is expected to select or reappoint its mayor later this month.

In Palmer, where voters chose two candidates from a list of five or from the write-in field, the two candidates with the most votes will take seats on the council. Incumbent John Alcantra had 119 votes, and Victoria Hudson had 113, according to preliminary results. Nathan Bedford had 91 votes, Aundra “Omega" Jackson had 47 and Jameson Corbin had 11. More than 100 absentee, early and write-in votes remain to be counted. 

In Wasilla, incumbents Cathy Cottle and Stuart Graham ran uncontested; both were reelected.

There were no propositions or ballot questions on any of the cities' ballots.

Voter turnout was about 10% in Houston and about 6% in Palmer. In Wasilla, turnout was just over 3%.

The official vote count in Houston will be updated with write-in, absentee, and early votes by late Friday, and the results will be certified at a special meeting scheduled for Monday. The Palmer count will be updated throughout the week and certified at a special meeting scheduled for Tuesday. Wasilla results will be certified at a meeting scheduled for Oct. 14.

This story was updated Oct. 3 with the number of early and absentee votes yet to be counted in Houston.

— Contact Amy Bushatz at abushatz@matsusentinel.com.