Incumbent Craig Moe Expected Winner in Laurel Mayoral Race

Updated 10:40 p.m.

Laurel Mayor Craig Moe appeared to be cruising to a third term in office late Tuesday. Unofficial voter tallies placed him as the clear front runner in the 2011 mayoral race.

Excluding absentee and provisional ballots, Moe captured roughly 49 percent of the vote. Candidate Mike Sarich followed with 27 percent followed by candidate Valerie Cunningham with 24 percent of the vote.

In the race for the at-large council seat,  captured 58 percent of the vote, the only candidate to top 1,000 votes so far. Challenger  took 42 percent of the vote.

There were 65 absentee ballots being counted and 24 provisional ballots will be counted Wednesday.

Updated at 10 p.m.

Laurel Mayor Craig Moe has taken the unofficial lead in the vote count for the 2011 Laurel Mayoral Election, according to judges for the city's Board of Election.

Moe outpaced opponents Mike Sarich and Valerie Cunningham in voter counts from Ward 1 and Ward 2, with 739 votes, followed by Sarich's 440 votes and Cunningham's 425.

In the at-large election, Council President  took the lead over challenger  capturing 833 votes so far compared to Rousseau's 667 votes.

The Board of Election Supervisors is still counting absentee ballots.

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More than 1,300 votes have been cast as the polls closed in Tuesday's election in Laurel, according to city officials.

Polls officially closed at 8 p.m. Results from the Ward 2 poll are being transferred to the Laurel Municipal Center for a final tally.

Turnout remained steady throughout the early hours of Election Day but surged toward the end with a line stretched outside poll doors in Ward 2.

Ismat Zaman, a six-year resident of Laurel, rolled into the  after 7 p.m. with her husband and daughter to vote.

"It's our duty to be here when they need our participation otherwise we can't complain," said Zaman, who is supporting mayoral candidate Mike Sarich. 

Jackie Anderson, 64, said she's been voting in the city for the last 20 years. She said she was increasingly concerned about economic development and bus transportation.

"That local bus is the pits," she said. 

Be sure to stick with Laurel Patch for a live broadcast and updates during the vote count tonight at the Laurel Municipal Center. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter @LaurelPatch for live updates.