So far, Bristol has almost 45% of the vote, and his competitor Clint Scherf has almost 55%.

Bristol has served as mayor of Grants Pass for the past four years and survived a recall attempt against her last fall, while Scherf previously served on the city council.

Scherf wrote on his campaign’s Facebook page Tuesday: “Election Day is finally here. Everyone must vote, your vote counts. Put your ballots in a Dropbox today. Thank you all for your support. I am confident that our community has voted for change.”

Bristol wrote on her business Facebook page Monday: “Your vote is important! Make sure to place your ballot in a box by Tuesday 8 p.m. Thank you for your support!”

Both candidates agree on the main issues facing the city: homelessness, public safety and economic development.

But Bristol says she has the knowledge and experience to keep moving forward, while Scherf says the city needs new leadership.

Perhaps the most important topic of discussion during Bristol’s term has been the homelessness crisis. Homeless residents filed a lawsuit against the city in 2018, before Bristol became mayor, claiming the city was trying to drive homeless people out of town. This case was appealed to the United States Supreme Court. In June, the Supreme Court ruled with the city, maintaining its ban on public camping.

But that doesn’t mean the homelessness crisis has gone away. Grants Pass has since created two city-owned temporary campsites for the homeless, to comply with a state law that says rules governing where homeless people can camp must be “objectively reasonable,” although that term is not specifically defined.

Bristol was supported by the county Democratic Party, while Scherf was supported by the county Republican Party, even though the mayor holds a nonpartisan position.

Nearly all of the eight City Council candidates, who are vying for four nonpartisan seats, were also endorsed by the county’s political parties.

Preliminary results also show that the city council is on track to recruit new blood.

So far, Republican-backed Indra Nicholas is beating Democratic-backed Brian DeLaGrange with about 52 percent of the vote to his 47 percent.

Republican-backed Victoria Marshall is on pace to beat Democratic-backed Jay Meredith by about 55% to about 44%.

And preliminary results show Republican-backed Kathleen Krohn beating Democratic-backed incumbent Vanessa Ogier by about 45 percent to nearly 36 percent. Mark Kelsey comes in third, with about 18% of the vote in this race.

The fourth seat will be filled by Erich Schloegl, backed by the county Republican Party, who ran unopposed.