El Mirage Bond Election Too Close To Call, But Surprise Voters Elect New Mayor

It's not looking good for El Mirage officials who rallied for voters to approve an $8.5 million bond for a new police station and to partially fund the building of a local YMCA.

But with only a 19-vote gap, it's too close to call.

Residents cast 984 ballots against the measure, which would have raised their property taxes, and 965 were in favor of it.

El Mirage officials, lead by Mayor Lana Mook, pushed hard for its approval.

Mook formed a political action committee in favor of the bond and established a pro-bond website, but they didn't bother to include any contact information on it or identify who was behind it. It wasn't until recently that her group finally copped to being behind the website.

Her group put up "vote yes" signs on the property of an El Mirage gas station owner who opposed the measure, and then sent cops to his business several times after he took them down.

County election officials say that results are still unofficial, so it appears that El Mirage voters who oppose the bond will have to wait a while before declaring victory.

Next door, in Surprise, voters decided to oust Mayor Lynn Truitt, giving the city's top job instead to Sharon Wolcott, a former councilwoman who represented District 1.

Although they gave up one incumbent on Tuesday, voters kept councilmen Richard Alton and John Williams, according to unofficial results from the Maricopa County Elections Department.

Wolcott snagged the mayor's job with 10,802 votes, or nearly 56 percent of the vote.

Voters favored Alton with 2,408 votes, about 52 percent of the vote, and Williams with a commanding lead over his opponent, won the election with 3,456 votes, more than 58 percent of the ballots cast.