Voters in Great Bend, Ellinwood, and Pawnee County all had special election questions on their ballots Tuesday and all three passed.

Great Bend’s half-cent sales tax will continue, Ellinwood USD 355’s bond issue was approved, and in Pawnee County, establishments will be able to sell liquor by the drink without a minimum food sales requirement.

In Great Bend, a “yes” vote continues a sales tax that has been in place for many years. Those who wanted the tax to end could vote “no.” the total was 3,372 yes to 1,418 no.

In Ellinwood USD 355, there were 681 “yes” votes to approve a bond issue; 566 “no” votes were cast.

County offices posted unofficial election night results. The official final results will be determined after county commissioners canvass the ballots next week. In Great Bend, that will happen prior to the Nov. 12 Barton County Commission meeting at the courthouse that morning.

Barton County reported 10,477 ballots cast, including one blank ballot. That represents 62.07% of the 16,880 registered voters.

In the Presidential Election, Republicans Trump/Vance received 8,059 votes, Democrats Harris/Walz received 2,156, Independents Kennedy/Shanahan received 114, and Libertarians Oliver/ter Maat received 41.

For state senator 33rd District, Republican Tory Marie Blew received 8,333 Barton County votes to Democrat Matthew Westenfeld’s 1,776.

For state representative, 112th district, Republican Sherri Brantley received 6,266 votes to Democrat Mark Rondeau’s 2,489.

For state representative, 113th district, Republican Brett Fairchild received 1,095 votes to Democrat Jo Ann Roth’s 271.

For 20th Judicial District Jude Div. 2, Republican Levi Morris received 6,743 votes . He faced a write-in challenger, Kate Wary, and there were 2,309 write-in votes.

Division 3 Judge Lisa Beran was unopposed and received 8,930 votes.

In the race for County Register of Deeds, Republican Susan Williams received 8,323 votes. She faced a write-in challenger, Glennda French, and there were 1,045 write-in votes.

There was a race in Great Bend for councilmember of the 1st Ward of the city council. Gary W. Parr received 532 votes, taking the seat from incumbent Lindsey Krom-Craven, who received 425 votes.

There was a race for a representative of the Ellinwood Hospital District. David Gonzales received 787 votes and Harry A. Whiting Jr. received 246.

Barton County Commissioners Barb Esfeld (2nd district) and Shawn Hutchinson (3rd district), both unopposed Republicans, were reelected with 1,616 and 1,186 votes, respectively.

Other unopposed candidates’ vote totals, as well as results for township officials, can be found on the Barton County website, bartoncounty.org, under the election results tab.

This story was modified on Nov. 7 to correct the number of votes on the Ellinwood USD 355 bond issue. The question passed 681 to 566.