Island County Auditor Suzanne Sinclair’s apparent stronghold on the Republican bid for U.S. Representative seems to be in jeopardy.

Bellingham resident Larry Klepinger, who some have said is not a bona-fide Republican, is clinging to a narrow lead in the race to challenge Democratic incumbent Rick Larsen.

As of Friday afternoon, Klepinger led Sinclair by 349 votes. Glenn Coggeshell, who was also vying for the Republican seat, trails Klepinger by 5,494 votes.

“I’m surprised to say the least,” Klepinger said Thursday. “I was an underdog from the beginning of this.”

The emergence of Klepinger as the leader has some local Republicans concerned, said Andy Valrosa, chair of the Island County Republicans.

“Even though he’s got that ‘R’ next to his name, that doesn’t mean he’s an ‘R,’ “ Valrosa said.

Klepinger’s success is fueled by his performance in Whatcom County, where he has nearly twice as many votes as Sinclair.

“I’m very happy to see there are a lot of people who think along the same lines that I do,” Klepinger said. “I think my support came from the people.”

The state’s Republican party had written Klepinger off as a contender to Larsen’s seat. Sinclair and Coggeshell received backing from the party.

One of the reasons, Valrosa said, is that Klepinger does not adequately represent the ideals and beliefs of the party.

“I don’t think he’s a bonafide Republican,” Valrosa said. “His ideals don’t represent the Republican party and, in fact, they make him more similar to Rick Larsen.”

Klepinger said he is running as what he calls a “new Republican.”

“We’re not in favor of abortion, but the woman has the final decision on the topic,” Klepinger said. “I also believe civil unions should be allowed.”

These views differ from traditional Republican beliefs he said, especially his stance on gay marriage. Marriage is a religious value and should be left to individual churches, he said.

“Between Larry and Suzanne, I think Suzanne would best represent the Republican ideology and positions,” Valrosa said.

Sinclair said that since the race is so close, she is refusing to give up hope.

“I did expect to have a little more support,” she said. “It ain’t over until it’s over.”

Sinclair said Klepinger’s strong presence in Whatcom County is largely behind his success. She said she was not able to campaign in Whatcom as much as she wanted to.

Klepinger said he is still focused on emerging victorious and not on Larsen, yet.

“If Suzanne Sinclair and I have 800 votes between us, I’d be a dammed fool to say I’d won,” Klepinger said.

“This is kind of a nail biter.”