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Commissioners adopt 2025 precinct boundary changes after public hearing to reflect annexations and voter caps
Summary
Following a public hearing, the Thurston County commissioners adopted an ordinance updating precinct boundaries and legal descriptions to reflect recent Lacey annexations and population thresholds; changes add and rename multiple precincts to keep precinct voter counts under state limits.
The Thurston County Board of County Commissioners on April 15 adopted an ordinance updating precinct boundaries and legal descriptions after a public hearing held by the county auditor’s office. The changes respond to recent City of Lacey annexations and to precincts approaching Washington state limits on active registered voters.
Auditor’s staff told the board the updates are required under state election law so that no precinct exceeds the statutory cap on active registered voters and so that precincts do not straddle city and county jurisdiction lines after annexations.
Lynn Watanabe and Auditor Hall outlined the package of changes: five Lacey annexations required mapping and renaming in affected areas; several precincts approaching the approximate 1,500 active-registered-voter threshold were split or adjusted. The auditor’s presentation listed specific precinct splits and new precinct numbers, including creation of new Lacey precinct numbers and the division of precincts named Forest, McIntosh, Sunwood Lakes, Beavercreek, Lacey 24 and two Yelm precincts.
The board took the ordinance through a voice vote and then separately adopted amendments updating county commissioner district legal descriptions to reflect the new precinct layout.
The county auditor said approximately 5,235 voters are affected by the changes and that the county will begin implementing the precinct boundary updates to ensure affected voters receive proper ballots. Staff asked the board to act so clerks and election staff could move voters into the correct precincts ahead of upcoming elections.
No one in the boardroom offered public testimony on the precinct changes during the hearing; the board closed the hearing and adopted the ordinance.
Authority cited during the hearing included RCW 29A.16.040, which governs precinct boundary adjustments and the timing of changes relative to candidate filing periods. The auditor’s office said changes were timed to comply with the statutory calendar and to avoid splitting city and county jurisdiction on ballots.
