Homer council members hang onto seats, for now

0
Recall supporters stand for a group picture at the end of a long day of sign-waving in Homer, Alaska.

It’s all over but the counting. The polls have closed in Homer, Alaska, and it looks like one city council member may not make it through the recall election, but it all depends on the early votes, which won’t be counted until Friday.

Some 1,041 votes were cast today. Today’s results are:

Donna Aderhold – Recall 493, Don’t recall 572, or 46-54 percent

David Lewis – Recall 499, Don’t recall 563, or 47-53 percent

Catriona Reynolds – Recall 514, Don’t recall 547, or 49-51 percent

Supporters of the recall, Heartbeat of Homer, believe there are 820 early votes cast and as many as 200 absentee votes still uncounted.

“If our base went out and voted early, and I believe they did, it won’t take much to flip it the other way,” said Larry Zuccaro, one of the recall organizers.

Voting at City Hall was steady throughout the day.

Sign-wavers from both side stood on corners within sight of each other for 12 hours waving signs and flags. It was the culmination of four months of citizen activism that was ignited when the three city council members colluded via email to establish Homer as a sanctuary city, where illegal immigrants could be shielded from federal authorities.

[Read: Smoking gun intended sanctuary city]

 

  • Founder and Former Editor

    Suzanne Downing founded Must Read Alaska and served as its editor for many years. Her prolific writing spans nearly every topic meaningful to Alaskans. Before founding Must Read Alaska, she served as editor of the Juneau Empire and as a speechwriter for Governor Sean Parnell.

    View writer's portfolio