A Late-breaking Election: Just 20 Percent Of Ballots Returned

The 2014 election in Washington appears headed for a familiar pattern, low voter participation followed by last-minute voter turnout. Socialist Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant: She trailed on election night, won in the late count. (AP photo) The Secretary of State’s office reported Thursday that as of Wednesday’s mail, just 780,318 ballots had been returned in the state’s 39 counties — a 19.9 percent participation rate among the state’s 3.921 million registered voters.