The Tuesday primary for Alaska State Senate showed solid results for Republican candidates, although a couple of incumbents may be picked off by fellow Republican candidates in the Nov. 8 general election.
Republicans are poised to pick up one seat from Democrats in November and no Republican senators are in serious danger from a Democrat threat. These are the seats that may make up the Republican majority in January:
Senate Seat A: In Sitka-Southeast, incumbent Republican Sen. Bert Stedman is comfortable with 67.22% of the primary vote against Republican Michael Sheldon.
Senate Seat C: In Kodiak-Homer, incumbent Republican Sen. Gary Stevens, who used to represent Senate Seat P, is in the lead with 61.61% of the vote. Both of his challengers are Republicans, but combined only received 39%.
Senate Seat D: Tuckerman Babcock has over 50% of the vote in this three-way race, and it looks like he’ll be the leader as Jesse Bjorkman trails far behind with 35.60%. A third candidate, not aligned with a party, got 14.35%.
Senate Seat E: This is a south Hillside district in Anchorage, and incumbent Republican Sen. Roger Holland was surprised by former Sen. Cathy Giessel, a Bill Walker-endorsing Republican, getting ahead of him. Giessel has 36.12% and Holland has 31.23%, with the Democrat taking about 32%.
Senate Seat F: Republican Rep. James Kaufman is in solid condition for the general election with 56%.
Senate Seat H: Although Republican Sen. Mia Costello is trailing behind Democrat Rep. Matt Claman by 200 votes, she has not really started to campaign, and Claman spent $70,000 or more to get ahead of her, yet didn’t perform that well. Costello can win this district when she sets her goals on winning. It’s 50.91% to 49.09% at this point, with months to go.
Senate Seat L: Rep. Kelly Merrick, a representative who is a registered Republican but votes with the House Democrats, did surprisingly well with 53% of the vote in a four-way race for the conservative district. Merrick is unpredictable as a lawmaker but will probably join the majority Republicans — for now.
Senate Seat M: Incumbent Republican Sen. Shelley Hughes easily dominated with 77% of the vote for this Valley seat.
Senate Seat N: Incumbent Republican Sen. David Wilson is in a good position with 46% of the vote against two other Republicans, Scott D Clayton, and Stephen Wright.
Senate Seat O: Incumbent Republican Sen. Mike Shower has a strong challenge from Republican Doug Massie, who has picked up 53.29% of the vote. Shower may end up going back to flying commercial cargo jets full time. Right now, he has 46.71% of the vote.
Senate Seat P: Jim Matherly did very well in Fairbanks and is poised to beat incumbent Democrat Sen. Scott Kawasaki in December. It’s Matherly at 45.73%, with Kawasaki at 47.79% and Republican Alex Jafre at 6.48%.
Senate Seat Q: Incumbent Republican Sen. Robert Myers easily won with 64.02% against two other candidates.
Senate Seat R: Incumbent Republican Sen. Click Bishop easily bested Elijah Verhagen, 56.94% to 25.69%, with Robert Williams, an AIP candidate, peeling off 17.37%.
Senate Seat S: Sen. Lyman Hoffman, a Democrat, often makes a deal to join the Republican caucus. Must Read Alaska marks him safe with over 61% of the vote for his rural Alaska district.
Alaska State unincorporated is not the same as the Territorial State of Alaska, Inc. or the Municipal STATE OF ALASKA, INC. These are separate entities – totally different jurisdictions. Don’t get them mixed up.
Hi Sharon. Most US CITIZENS don’t know all the US CORP bankruptcies affect us. The federal reserve bankers own all citizens except American state nationals, which we are because we are the Priority Creditors. We exited the corrupt govts and are reaping the benefits.
Subtract Cathy Giessel, Kelly Merrick, Bert Steadman, Gary Stevens, and Click Bishop and you have 8 republicans and 12 democrats. The Alaska Senate will be a Bill Walker Caucus.
That is a sad picture of reality.
All the more reason to somehow find our way back to closed primaries. It’ll be like walking a minefield now.
I honestly don’t know how Kelly Merrick received that many votes after she gave the proverbial middle finger to all of her constituents the last 2 years. I guess her constituents are just as bad as she is and lack any moral integrity too.
Don’t go lumping all Eagle River voters together, many of us voted for Ken McCarty and will do so again in November.
I wonder if she was helped by the “Kelly” (Tshibaka) campaign for Senate?
Nobody hates republican voters more than republican politicians.
Mr. Nelson: Gary Stevens may be the Senate President and he may be presiding over a coalition organization, but it will not be some sort of Bill Walker caucus. Mike Dunleavy is going to get re-elected, not Bill Walker, unless Mike Dunleavy makes a whopper mistake before the general election, which he is unlikely to do. Mike Dunleavy has learned on the job and gotten better over the years. Plus, the increase in oil prices are a baum on the body politic, which is good for incumbents.
I cannot believe someone who stopped the PFD, in depressed southeast is ahead by 67.22 percent. what are people thinking?
One word: ferries
Will it really matter though? Most of these republicans are as useless as s&@t on a pump handle. Stutes? She’s no friend of republicans. Neither are most of the trollops who resided in Juneau the past few years. I guess it’s good we won the numbers game but it’s a small victory. Get ready for more inaction and cut-rate pfd’s.
Frank: If they are so useless, what accounts for their success with the electorate?
Oh good, Cathy giessel is back. Man things are bound to get better now.
Then I’m moving back to Canada.
Short memory peeps. Will you never learn?
While folks like Stedman, Stevens, Giessel and Merrick can pin a Republican button on, their very long history reveals a fondness for labor unions and converting all Permanent Fund revenues into a source for never-ending government handouts. As a younger person, I was attracted to the Republican principle of limited government. None of the four I list can honestly say they embrace that principle. Rest assured, if these four are elected, they will try to organize the Senate around themselves and their clients. Limited-government Senators will be in the minority.
Roger that.
And, as mentioned in another comment, I also should include former union official “Click” Bishop in my list. If there ever has been a nominal Republican, he is one. Limited government is doomed.
JMARK: Lay out the principles a real Republican should harbor?
Have 100% Rs means nothing if they vote like they usually do.
Another really, really not insightful comment by a person who is likely clueless about how collective decision making actually occurs.
Giessel, you’re shi**ing me!
Something stinks.
Mike Shower is respected in his district. He was leading an effort on election integrity and looking into Dominion voting machines.
Conveniently now Mike Shower does not win re-election? No disrespect to Massie, but something feels off.
There needs to be a hand recount for Seat E, Seat L, and Seat O.
Cathy Giessel and Kelly Merrick are widely hated even in their own districts for being RINO turncoats serving special interests. Giessel especially should not have beat Roger Holland
It’s a primary. Hasn’t lost yet
He was re-districted, just like Christoper Kurka. They put Kurka and Eastman in the same district, and it appears Kurka decided to do something else.
Mike Shower losing to Doug Massie? Really people? Mike is very popular and has been doing an awesome job for the State of Alaska, and voters turn on him and vote for Dunleavy’s guy? Wow. I guess Eureka Roadhouse and all the others who supported Doug don’t deserve any more business from us.
I wonder what Amanda Price has to say about this?
Or is voter fraud really that big of a problem in Alaska? Something is off with this election, or voters have lost their minds and committed political suicide.
Something is off alright–RCV… It’s amusing to hear pundits in the L48 try to explain it to their national audience.
It’s the Walker machine in action. I’d bet my house in the case of Holland and Shower, Walker’s minions are voting as told.
In those races, the alleged republican challengers are worse than Democrats.
It’s also time to accept we are not a red state anymore.
The Masked Avenger gets it exactly wrong, yet again. Alaska is, overall, a red state and very likely will continue to be so. We go blue when nutty R’s are put up into a race that isn’t stacked red, although I have to note Sarah Palin is very likely to be elected to Congress in the special election once the ballots are counted. Palin will be a delight for the media and really do a great job at representing herself in Congress but naturally will forget about Alaska and Alaskans while running around to media and hanging with kooks like Margie Green and other flakes. The adults in Aalaska, including the adults in the Republican Party are going to need to put on their work boots starting in late August so we can elect Nick Begich and discard the flake from Arizona or Manhattan or wherever she is hanging the peculiar costumes she prefers to attire herself.
Oh well, it’s a democracy and we get what we deserve when it comes to Palin and the other nutty personalities inhabiting the political sphere anymore.
I have been unable to keep up with everything because of my health issues (and my husband too). This completely shocked me. I had not heard anything except complete support for Mike. He has been my hero down in Juneau. Did Dunleavy come out with something not supporting him?
Stutes, Babcock, Stevens, Giessel, Merrick & Bishop? About the best that can be said for them is that they are RINO’s. A more apt term would be closet Democrats. Our election integrity is totally corrupted. We delude ourselves into thinking we actually elect candidates, while in reality candidates are selected for us.
We have free and fair elections open to all voters, dead or alive
Fishing: Tuckerman Babcock is a genuine Republican. It’s possible to disagree with some of his positions or his techniques deployed to advance his goals but branding him with the RINO label is wrong and makes me wonder what your definition of a Republican is? Come on, let’s have it. What are the bedrock principles by which a real Republican should be evaluated?
Joe – Someone with a name like Tuckerman cannot be taken seriously! I’m sorry. Ha, ha,ha…
Full statutory PFD, total decertification of the 2020 election, and removal of all electronic Dominion voting machines
Comments are closed.