The one local election in Idyllwild did generate a surprise. Measure W, the Idyllwild Fire Protection District’s proposal to raise parcel fees, is losing as of Friday evening, Nov. 11. While 57.4 percent of voters chose “Yes,” IFPD needs two-thirds of the ballots cast to support the increase.
Through Friday, 1,145 ballots have been counted and 657 were “Yes.” However, IFPD would have needed 763 to have been cast for “Yes” for it to be approved. The county has about 200,000 ballots still to count. IFPD will need well more than 100 votes, even if all were “Yes” to gain approval for the measure.
On Sunday, Fire Chief Patrick Reitz was still hopeful and not ready to concede defeat yet when asked about future plans if the measure does not pass.
“The District is awaiting the full and complete counting of all ballots cast while the Registrars office works to finalize counting and verification,” he said in an email. “It would be premature to make any assumptions or comments based on an incomplete count of the ballots, which is the voice of the voters.”
