Preliminary results in the Santa Barbara County’s Auditor-Controller election put Kyle Slattery ahead of incumbent Betsy Schaffer.

In semi-official election night results, Slattery had 51.3% of the vote compared to Schaffer’s 48.3%. They were separated by about 1,700 votes out of more than 67,000 ballots case.

Reacting to the initial returns, Schaffer told Noozhawk via text that she wishes the early results “were more in my favor, but I think it’s still early and am hopeful that things will move in my direction…as more results come in.”

“I love my job and the people I work with and hope to continue all our efforts. We have a lot of work to do together,” she added.

Slattery said he is “excited” about the early results.

“Fifty-one percent is really close, but it’s a really positive initial report,” he said. “We ran a good campaign (and) got a lot of support… I’m looking forward to an update later tonight.”

The Auditor-Controller’s Office deals with the county’s accounting, financial and payroll services. 

Slattery, the county’s information technology department deputy chief, challenged incumbent Schaffer, his former boss, for the Auditor-Controller seat.

Schaffer has served as the county’s auditor-controller since she was appointed in 2018, then elected in 2019. She has worked in the office since 1991. 

Slattery spent 12 years at the Auditor-Controller’s Office before heading to the Information Technology Department last year. 

Four of the five Santa Barbara County supervisors endorsed Slattery in the election. 

Board members had criticized Schaffer for the way she handled setting up the county’s new financial-processing program.

Schaffer defended her work, telling Noozhawk that the board’s timeline was short, and she had concerns about the new program’s ability to handle payroll functions. 

Read Noozhawk’s previous coverage of the Auditor-Controller candidates here. 

The Santa Barbara County Elections Office released semi-official election night results late Tuesday and will have updates in the coming days as additional ballots are processed and counted. The county needs to certify the June 2 election results by July 2.  

Check back with Noozhawk for updates to this story and other election results.