Based on the latest, unofficial election results available by press time, newcomers David Rouse and Lena Berry are in line to grab seats on the Redmond Area Parks and Recreation District board.

In a three-way race for Position 4, Rouse had a sizable lead over two candidates who seem to have split the vote.

Rouse had a nearly 1,000 vote lead As of press time, Rouse had 3,401 votes, or 43.7 percent, followed by Soper’s 2,423 (31.2 percent) and Harmon’s 1,936 (24.9 percent)

David Rouse, 73, looks to have won the seat in his first race for public office. He is a retired public works director who spent most of his career with the city of Gresham, where he oversaw the city’s parks for 12 years. He has lived in Central Oregon for three years.

Rouse said he was impressed by the slate of winning candidates throughout the election. He said good candidates will translate to productive, responsible boards.

“I think the thing that inspired me are the people who are running,” he said. “Redmond will be very proud.”

In the race for Position 5, Lena Berry had a sizable lead over Louie Arzaga.

As of press time, Berry had an advantage of about 1,300 votes, roughly 58.7 percent to 40.1 percent.

Berry said she was excited about the hard-fought victory and was looking forward to joining the board.

“Everyone worked really hard,” said Berry Tuesday night after the initial results came in. “There was tons of text banking and door-to-door knocking. We are proud of ourselves.”

Countywide, roughly 22.9 percent of voters —35,476 residents — returned ballots in the May 16 election.

Deschutes County will not officially certify the election for another few weeks.

The deadline to certify is June 5.