Editor's note: This story was updated at 10:20 p.m. Tuesday with the latest results.
Two seats at the Philomath City Council table could change hands in January. Election returns Tuesday night from the Benton County Elections Office showed former councilor David Low and challenger Amanda Polley in position to join incumbent Jessica Andrade, while incumbent Richard Saalsaa sat in fifth place.
Andrade led the five-candidate field with 1,645 votes (25.57%) in the 10 p.m. update of results. Low was second with 1,380 (21.45%) and Polley third with 1,321 (20.53%).
Challenger Candy Garcia was fourth with 1,125 votes (17.49%). Saalsaa had 897 (13.94%). Write-in votes totaled 66.
Polley holds a 196-vote lead over Garcia for the third seat, and 59 votes separate Low and Polley. Additional ballots remain to be counted.
Philomath does not use wards or districts for council elections. The three seats go to the top three vote-getters in an at-large race. The seats carry four-year terms that begin Jan. 1 and run through Dec. 31, 2030. The positions are nonpartisan and unpaid.
Andrade has served on the council since 2021. She works as substitute classified staff for the Philomath School District and for Edustaff in the Corvallis School District.
Low retired after a career in finance and banking. He served three terms on the council after winning elections in 2016, 2018 and 2020. He lost his 2022 reelection bid by a single vote.
Polley works as an office specialist in Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences and chairs the Philomath Inclusivity Committee.
Garcia owns a bakery and catering business and works as a classified substitute for the Philomath School District. She also serves on the Philomath Park Advisory Board and the Philomath Public Art Committee.
Saalsaa is a retired deputy fire chief who now consults for Priority Dispatch Corp. He was appointed to the council in January 2025 to complete a term that expires at the end of this year.
County commissioner
Democrat John Wilson holds a commanding lead for a seat on the Benton County Board of Commissioners. Wilson had 28,550 votes (80.86%) to 5,976 (16.92%) for Pacific Green Party candidate James Dashiell. Write-ins totaled 783.
Wilson won the contested Democratic primary in May over incumbent Pat Malone. No Republican candidates filed for the seat, so the November race came down to Wilson and Dashiell. Dashiell is a Corvallis graphic designer who filed his candidacy on the final day of the filing period.
Uncontested races
Benton County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Scott Bressler was the only candidate on the ballot for county sheriff. He received 28,638 votes (97.88%). Current Sheriff Jef Van Arsdall’s term expires at the end of 2026.
Incumbent Rep. David Gomberg, D-Otis, was also unopposed on the ballot in House District 10, which includes Philomath. He had 5,509 votes in Benton County.
Summit resident David Barron, who also has a strong connection to Philomath, was unopposed for the Zone 1 seat on the Benton Soil and Water Conservation District board. He received 25,497 votes (98.58%).
As of 10 p.m., the Benton County Elections Office reported 43,578 ballots accepted out of 61,355 eligible voters, for an unofficial turnout of 71.03%.
The Benton County Elections Office plans another update of unofficial results on Nov. 12 after the deadline for postmarked ballots to arrive, and Nov. 25, when final results are expected after the ballot challenge resolution deadline. Certified official results are due by Nov. 30.
