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A day after the election, control of the Salt Lake County Council still hangs in the balance, with Democratic challenger Catherine Kanter clinging to a small early tally lead over incumbent Republican Richard Snelgrove.
Tens of thousands of late-arriving votes remain to be tabulated. While both candidates were optimistic Wednesday that those ballots will break down in their favor, neither seemed overconfident about the outcome. The next batch of numbers will be released Thursday afternoon.
"I wish I were holding onto this tenuous lead rather than my opponent," said Snelgrove, 61, referring to the 50.9 percent to 49.1 percent edge Kanter held with a little more than half of the ballots counted in the race for a six-year at-large seat on the council.
The Republicans have a 5-4 majority right now. But if Kanter holds on to win, the Democrats would have a dominant position in county government, enjoying the council majority as well as having Ben McAdams in the mayor's office for a second term.
"I am delighted with the preliminary results," said Kanter, 49, an attorney who is on the county's Mountainous Planning Commission. She figured most of the ballots to be tabulated were late mail-ins or those dropped off Monday and Tuesday at designated locations.
"We suspect they're from all over the county and that bodes well for me because I was trending well across the county," Kanter said, adding she's hopeful the outcome will become clear soon. "I need to prepare myself to govern. I will take every moment I have to prepare."
Snelgrove, a member of the famous ice cream family and the operator of several online travel companies, said he doesn't think that preparatory work will be necessary.
As he reviewed the counted numbers Wednesday, he observed that "Democratic straight ticket voters dwarfed the Republicans by 50 percent." He thinks straight-party voters turned in their ballots early, "so I don't think the numbers will hold up."
"Either way," Snelgrove added, "it's going to be close. Win or lose, it's been an honor to serve. Should I win, it will be an honor to continue serving."
McAdams declared victory Wednesday when he held a 60,000-vote lead over Robinson, 48, a businessman.
Having received nearly 62 percent of the vote so far, the 41-year-old McAdams was "humbled by the support of so many residents from all over the valley and more optimistic than ever about our future."
Robinson was not ready Wednesday to concede defeat — "let's just wait until all the votes are counted," he said — and vowed to keep fighting for the issues that turned him from a consultant into a politician, namely the effort to help private landowners in the central Wasatch Canyons to develop their holdings.
McAdams also was looking ahead. "We need to continue to champion common-sense ideas to enhance our air quality, protect our canyon watershed for future generations, expand access to early childhood education, reform our criminal justice system and continue to lead nationally in job creation."