“We’re going to Disneyland.That was Barry Sehlin’s reaction Friday when it appeared likely he would succeed in his effort to take Dave Anderson’s place in the Washington State House of Representatives.Sehlin, an Oak Harbor Republican, wasn’t kidding. He and his wife Susan were packing for Disneyland where they will relax for a few days before Sehlin returns to lawmaking. He served in the Legislature for six years before voluntarily stepping aside. Now, he’s probably back.The vote count wasn’t official Friday, but Sehlin’s lead over Clinton Democrat Dave Anderson was slowly increasing as absentee votes were counted. Anderson was seeking his third term, but appears to have been narrowly rejected by the voters.According to the Secretary of State’ office, Sehlin had 18,774 votes as of Friday while Anderson had 17,496. Although the difference was only 1,278 votes, Sehlin’s edge had grown by a couple of hundred votes since the day after the election.It certainly looks pretty positive, Sehlin said.Anderson was ahead in the early vote totals Tuesday night, but when the vote from Oak Harbor came in at 1:30 a.m. Wednesday Sehlin took the lead. He’s held it ever since.Anderson was not immediately available for comment Friday morning. And he still has a chance to win, as thousands of absentees remain to be counted. But Sehlin expects to return next week from Disneyland to get ready for a House Republican caucus meeting that will be held in Olympia next Saturday.The 10th District’s other House seat is a sure thing. Incumbent Kelly Barlean, R-Langley, had 20,974 votes on Friday, compared to 14,183 for the Democratic opponent, John McCoy of Marysville.In the Senate, veteran 10th District Senator Mary Margaret Haugen appears to have won a third term. As of Friday, she had 19,647 votes compared to 17,458 for her Republican challenger, Langley resident Norma Smith. Haugen’s advantage, like Sehlin’s, has also been increasing as absentees are slowly counted. Wednesday morning Haugen’s lead over Smith was 1,945 votes, but by Friday it had grown to 2,189 votes.I think I have won it, Haugen said Friday morning. We knew it pretty much on election night.Haugen said the Democratic Party worked hard on getting absentee ballots out, and late returns have shown the strategy is working. In past years the absentee vote was mostly conservative, but that is no longer so.Haugen had just over 51 percent of the vote. Through the years, in both her House and Senate races, her winning margins have been the low 50s, she said. This isn’t the most liberal district in the state, she noted.Smith, like Anderson in the House race, still has a mathematical shot at coming back to win. But she had a realistic outlook on Friday.There’s still close to 20,000 absentees out, she said. We’ll know Monday, but it’s unlikely I’ll win it at this point. Win or lose, Smith said, she enjoyed her first campaign as a candidate. It was an awesome experience, she said. I have no regrets whatsoever.Haugen was pleased to see that Democrats will likely control the Senate when the next session convenes in January, meaning she will retain her position as chair of the Senate Transportation Committee. She was also happy that Initiative 745 was solidly defeated. That initiative would have gutted some transit agencies by dedicating 90 of transportation funds to roads. Now, Haugen said, there should be more support for buses, rail and ferries in the Legislature.Haugen lamented the apparent loss of Dave Anderson in the Legislature. It’s really a big loss. He was an absolute expert in the area of natural resources, she said.But she worked well with Sehlin in his prior years in the Legislature. The best of both worlds would have been to have both Dave and Barry, she said. Unfortunately, that’s not how politics works. “