Douglas County’s interim deputy treasurer will get a shot at the top job.

Cindy Monshizadeh, who joined the Treasurer’s Office in 1991, topped Sharon Englebrecht in Tuesday’s Republican primary for county treasurer.

Monshizadeh finished with 4,194 votes, or 53.1 percent, while Englebrecht finished with 3,703 votes for 46.9 percent.

The results from Tuesday’s primary are unofficial, pending consideration of dozens of provisional ballots cast but not yet counted. And while the formal review won’t come until Friday, Monshizadeh doesn’t intend to wait for official notice before hitting the campaign trail once again.

“I feel really good about the race, and I’m excited and ready to go,” Monshizadeh said Tuesday at the Douglas County Courthouse, upstairs from her daily post in the Treasurer’s Office.

Monshizadeh will face Paula Gilchrist, social service director for the Salvation Army in Lawrence, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary.

The two women are vying for the post to be vacated by Pat Wells, who did not seek re-election. The winner Nov. 2 will earn about $68,000 a year in the job overseeing a department with 20 employees and an annual operating budget of $375,000.

The treasurer is responsible for collecting taxes, issuing license plates for vehicles and investing county funds.

Monshizadeh and Englebrecht each campaigned on what they considered to be their strengths: experience in the office and dozens of years of experience in the financial industry.

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Englebrecht, a safe deposit attendant for U.S. Bank in Lawrence, said she was happy that she ran a “positive, honest” campaign. She’s not ready to give up the race just yet.

“I’m still looking forward to Friday,” she said, referring to the vote canvass scheduled for 9 a.m. at the courthouse, 11th and Massachusetts streets. “There’s always hope.”