An Anchorage woman who conspired with others to murder her friend in June of 2019 has been sentenced in another aspect of the case: Her role in a conspiracy to produce child sexual abuse material and pornography. She received a sentence of 30 years from the U.S. District Court on March 4.
Brehmer is already serving a 99-year sentence for the murder of Cynthia Hoffman at Thunderbird Falls near Chugiak.
According to court documents, Denali Brehmer, 23, and co-conspirator Darin Schilmiller conspired to murder Hoffman in June 2019 while Schilmiller was living in Indiana. While they were conspiring to commit Hoffman’s murder, they also conspired to coerce a minor victim to produce sexually explicit images, which Brehmer took and sent to Schilmiller via text message.
Brehmer and Schilmiller pleaded guilty to production of child pornography in U.S. District Court in July 2023. Schilmiller is awaiting sentencing. He also is serving 99 years in prison his role in Hoffman’s murder.
In delivering the sentence, the court ordered Brehmer to serve a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison on the child porn charge and the rest of her life on supervised release.
“The harm Ms. Brehmer has caused to the victims and their families through the course of her conduct is unfathomable,” said U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska. “My office will continue our unwavering commitment to work with our law enforcement partners to protect Alaska’s children and seek justice against perpetrators who choose to commit these reprehensible crimes.”
“Denali Brehmer’s actions are beyond heinous,” said Anchorage Police Chief Michael Kerle. “Overcoming the trauma the victim suffered due to Brehmer’s actions will be a life-long journey. This case is an excellent example of why various law enforcement entities working together through the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force is so vitally important. Hopefully today’s sentencing will aid the victim in their healing process.”
In Anchorage municipal elections, conducted by mail-in ballots, there have long been reasons to be suspicious. In recent elections, observers have noted all kinds of irregularities and brought forward complaints about instances that concerned them, such as thumb drives being inserted into vote-counting machines without first being wiped clean.
Their complaints were so annoying to the leftist-dominated Anchorage Assembly that it has passed ordinances that put a chill on election observers, threatening them with subpoenas and criminal charges. The Assembly has even sicced the city’s Ombudsman on election observers.
The last municipal clerk — in charge of elections for nearly a quarter century — was Barbara Jones.
She retired in June and is now the volunteer coordinator for the Suzanne LaFrance campaign for mayor.
Jones, during her years as the chief and architect of the election process in Anchorage, ran elections in which LaFrance was a candidate for Assembly. Now, she’s LaFrance’s tie-in to the Anchorage Division of Elections. It is a huge advantage for the extremist candidate who is endorsed by the Alaska Democratic Party.
Critics have noted that Jones is the one who designed an election observer system that suppresses the ability of observers and adds a fear factor into anyone who might want to watch the ballots being counted.
In fact, one previous observer has wondered why Jones reported that her office sent out 201,000 ballots, but also said it sent out 199,000 ballots. Daniel Smith has a public records request that has languished for months with the municipality. He has asked for all communications between the municipal election office and the printer in Washington state. For some reason, the Clerk’s Office, which reports to the Assembly, won’t give those emails over to Smith, even though he has paid the $400 demanded of him for the request.
Smith has written, “The Anchorage Assembly gave us the universal vote-by-mail system out of the kindness of their hearts. There was no problem with the previous voting system. We did not vote for the change-over. The assembly simply decided to fix something that was not broken. “
This was the same Assembly to which Jones reported for 24 years.
LaFrance first ran in 2017, and again in 2020. She served six years, including two as Assembly chair, the person to whom Jones reported.
While it’s not illegal for Jones, now a private citizen, to work on a campaign, it does demonstrate the tough campaign ahead for Mayor Dave Bronson, who is once again faced with the Jones Factor — the person who designed the system, defended the system, and tweaked the system to work in ways that conservatives have criticized, but not been able to reverse.
The Anchorage Municipal election for 2024 is underway, and ballots will be mailed to all eligible, and a number of ineligible voters on or around March 13 from the printer in Washington state. On the ballot, LaFrance is running for mayor against other major candidates, including Mayor Dave Bronson, former Rep. Chris Tuck, Bill Popp, and others. It appears that LaFrance has a leg up on the other candidates by having an apparent inroad into the city’s election center, due to her longtime tenure and relationships with election personnel.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s threatened veto of the current education bill,, SB 140 is precisely the response Alaska needs to awaken a Legislature that is out of step with Alaskans and wholly unresponsive to the modern crisis of non-education.
Education is the greatest equalizer known to mankind. It elevates people of every race, socio-economic status and creed like no other force in history. How did this egalitarian force of such immense power become so tainted by politics?
Education is compromised in the same way our freedom itself is undermined: through the slow erosion of our freedom to choose. This is the root cause of the decline in K-12 public education everywhere. Those who seek to monopolize and control K-12 education by restricting our choices, while at the same time promoting increased funding designed to perpetuate their control, are the problem. Conversely, those who seek to expand educational options are the solution.
There are endless examples of how expanded choice in education is succeeding everywhere. Charter schools are flourishing nationwide. Florida and other states have implemented transportable education credits that respect an individual’s right to choose among alternative schools. Platforms for advanced learning abound.
The subject of educational reform lacks precisely what is missing from education altogether: an unceasing quest for knowledge and truth. Our Legislature ignores approaches with proven track records and instead chooses to increase funding for NEA- and union-backed solutions, which carry zero accountability for improved outcomes, all under the guise of supporting students.
Ask your legislator to identify the root causes of our low nationwide standing in basic proficiency. Too often what we hear reveals a self-serving lack of interest in facing the truth.
The problem is a system monopolized by a single government agency that is increasingly estranged from – and distrustful of – the parents charged with raising these same K-12 children. The solution is expanding local options within a publicly managed system that encourages competition for improved outcomes, benefiting youth, parents, and taxpayers.
Improved outcomes in education will only come from expanding our ability to choose – just as it has throughout history in virtually every field of human endeavor. Increasingly, Alaskans feel they are being forced to fund an enterprise that is failing their children, that is insensitive to parental values, and that rejects accountability.
If increased compensation for teachers is needed, why is Governor Dunleavy’s bonus initiative that is targeted at the most critical need – recruitment of rural educators – rejected? Efforts to streamline administration, to privatize maintenance, or downsize our schools to re-direct money to teachers are all within the Legislature’s purview to enact – and yet they don’t. Why?
The answer is a political one. Well-meaning candidates for office adopt platforms of educational reform to win elections, and yet the tactics employed by unions to kill real progress are effective. Alaska’s two-term governor was elected to challenge this impasse. Yet every year, the Legislature foils the governor’s agenda. Every cycle, voters send Republican majorities to Juneau, only to witness coalitions forming around defending the educational status quo and calls for greater funding. Some high-profile legislative leaders who claim the Republican party label in practice have little in common with their party leader (Gov. Dunleavy) and their party’s education platform.
Increasingly, parents are fed up with low proficiency in basic academic fields, absenteeism and low graduation rates, erosion of cultural autonomy and values, and fewer students aspiring to higher academic pursuits.
The left argues so many points in opposition to school choice that it’s hard to track them all: that school choice victimizes the poor and “special needs” youth, that it syphons resources from public schools, and that charter schools steal role models from peers who learn better when they have someone to admire or emulate.
These arguments protect a broken sinkhole of spending, which keeps going up while enrollment and results decline. The inconvenient truth for the Left is that more money is being spent per pupil now than ever, but with little progress to show for it.
Anti-choice arguments do nothing to break the historic downward trends in outcome. Schools were never charged with replacing parents. Expanding the view of public education as having a broader mandate than pure learning is merely a tactic to increase budgets. School administrators who complain about lack of funding are the first to expand the mission of education beyond its core public mandate.
Competition among educational options is not the problem, but rather the solution. Competition produces improved outcomes in virtually every field of human endeavor and evidence abounds that it works in education. Today’s students, from our inner-city poor to the suburban privileged, all thrive in an atmosphere where public funding is managed by the individual in a manner that supports their self-interest, within a system where competition and choice are ever-present.
Public schools are suffering from revenue declines due to reductions in enrollment, and it will continue. If we continue down the path of NEA-controlled curriculum, partisan rancor will spoil education and ruin opportunities for our youth for years. Taxpayers will be forced to pay increased costs for a system they do not benefit from. Our schools own this outcome, after years of failing in their basic mission.
Freedom, ultimately, is humanity’s most equalizing concept, one uniquely enshrined in our institutions and the American dream. Core to our understanding of liberty is the freedom to choose among options afforded to us, which right is based on an abiding respect for each individual’s dignity, privacy, and aspirations. It is time to exercise our freedom and our ability to choose how we educate our youth.
Jon Faulkner is the president of Alaska Gold Communications, parent company to Must Read Alaska.
Kelly Tshibaka, born and raised in Alaska, is reshaping Alaska’s political scene. Her new podcast, Kelly for Alaska is the topic of Must Read Alaska’s latest show, as host John Quick and Tshibaka dive into podcasting topics, political topics, and Tshibaka’s more notable guests.
Tshibaka, now the state chair of the Alaska Trump campaign, celebrated the triumph in the Alaska presidential preference poll on Tuesday.
This episode offers a look at Tshibaka’s strategic approach, her impact on Alaska’s political dynamics, and her vision for advancing conservative values.
Join us for an energetic discussion that connects the dots between leadership, advocacy, and the future of Alaska under the spotlight of national politics.
Watch the interview on Facebook. Or find it anywhere you pick up your podcasts.
The worst-idea-of-the-year award goes to legislators who want to do away with the Permanent Fund dividend so even more money can be squirreled away or spent on more government.
Let’s look at the books and discover where the “spare change” ($18 billion) is hidden. But first, let’s look at the Alaska Constitution.
Dedicated funds are barred by the Alaska Constitution, and yet we have many unconstitutional special funds. All those special funds should be liquidated before asking Alaskans to forego their dividend. The darkest day for Alaskans would be to wake up to a reenacted income tax while we have billions hidden away from the voters.
The Alaska Constitution, Article Nine, Finance and taxation, section 7 states:
“The proceeds of any state tax or license shall not be dedicated to any special purpose, except as provided in section 15 of this article or when required by the federal government for state participation in federal programs. This provision shall not prohibit the continuance of any dedication for special purposes existing upon the date of ratification of this section by the people of Alaska. (Amended 1976)”
In non-legalist language, what does that mean? It means that Alaska Housing Finance Corporation does not get to keep its accumulated surplus of $1.6 billion. It means that the Power Cost Equalization Fund should be netted to the State’s General Fund at the end of each fiscal year and not immediately reappropriated. Am I against these programs? Not by a long shot. I’d love to see AHFC spend our money on housing. But that doesn’t give the Legislators or the senior leadership of state-owned non-profit organizations the right to violate the Constitution of Alaska. Why doesn’t the Legislature take the money back from the bureaucrats who are hoarding it?
Constitutionally, there are only three ways to dedicate funds.
1. The fund must be in operation prior to our vote for statehood.
2. The fund must be set aside to meet the state’s obligations in federal programs.
3. The Constitution must be amended by a majority of the voters dedicating these Special Funds. All other Funds default to the General Fund at the end of each fiscal year.
So why is this so important? Because voters could buy the argument which has been floated for years that we’re broke and therefore must cut the dividend or do away with it all together. Fortunately, the federal government passed a bill a couple decades ago requiring any town, city, borough, state or state entity to file a comprehensive annual financial report so that the public can separate reality from political posturing. Just google CAFR 2023 Alaska and you’re in the hunt. Here’s a cursory look at what you will find:
Alaska Community Foundation Fund Balances (CBRF Market Value $167,386,768)
Alaska Energy Administration, (TNP $1,381,934,000)
Alaska Higher Education Fund (AHE Market Value $388,200,000)
Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (Total Net Position, TNP, $1,600,000.000)
Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (TNP $1,474,920)
Alaska Municipal Bond Bank Authority (TNP $55,483,692)
Alaska Permanent Fund (Realized Earnings $5,240,347,000)
Constitutional Budget Reserve (CBR Market Value $2,760,000,000)
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Investment Fund (EVOS Market Value $100,500,000)
General Fund (GeFONSI Market Value $3,370,000,000)
Public School Trust Fund (PSTF Market Value $779,000,000)
Retiree Health Insurance Fund (RHIF Market Value $834,800,000)
Unless my math is off, that is $18 billion in the bank. It seems to me, we should be celebrating our largess instead of crying in our beer. Factually, there is no state in the United States that has our kind of wealth.
The senators have decided that they get to spend 75% of the earnings of the Alaska Permanent Fund on more government instead of the 50% we originally agreed upon. The governor is holding out for the full dividend. The House Majority supports the governor’s position.
What’s missing here is the consent of the governed. How do we advise those elected to represent us?
Excuses abound why the full dividend cannot be paid. But, when you look at the books, it appears that our elected members of the Legislature are looking for reasons to spend our money on more government rather than pay the dividend originally promised.
They hope you are not paying attention. Let’s prove them wrong with retirement as the reward for those who would vote against us.
Jim Crawford is a third-generation Alaskan entrepreneur who resides in Anchorage with his bride of 41 years, Terri. Crawford, known as the Permanent Fund Defender, was a member of the Investment Advisory Committee, appointed by Governor Jay Hammond to plan and execute the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation.
Anchorage Assembly member Karen Bronga was shocked. She said thought that her original resolution calling on the Alaska delegation in Washington D.C. to work cease fire resolution would pass the Assembly unanimously last month. She didn’t think it was controversial. Instead, the majority took a pass and put it in the “postpone indefinitely” basket.
Undeterred, Bronga and other Assembly members — Felix Rivera and George Martinez — brought the resolution back, with some changes. This time it passed 8-4.
Bronga said she had spent time listening to the Jewish community, which was worried about safety, the same thing the Palestinians living in Alaska are worried about. She said she heard about the need to be clear that Hamas is a terrorist organization. “At this point, a cease fire needs to happen. This has to stop,” she said.
Rather than postpone indefinitely, the Assembly was ready to debate and vote on the resolution. While members of the pro-terrorist group Party for Liberation and Socialism, a communist group, yelled at the Assembly from the audience on Tuesday evening, Assembly members expressed their points of discomfort about the resolution.
Assemblyman Daniel Volland said that he was disappointed in the audience members who were clambering for no changes to the original ordinance, and holding up signs that said, “No S Version.” He said the amended version calls for a lasting peace and bilateral cease fire, and the ability to deliver aid. “It also has a ‘whereas’ that says both Jewish and Palestinians have ties to the region and both have been subjected to colonization and oppression.” He also referred to a previous Assembly resolution “that condemned political violence and extremism of all forms.”
Assemblyman Rivera said he opposed changing the original resolution and said this is an instance where “saying a little bit less is actually better. It [the amendment] goes too far for me.” He then said that while he was at a drag show over the weekend, the topic of Gaza was what everyone wanted to talk with him about. He also called it a “sanctity of human life” issue.
Assemblywoman Meg Zaletel said that she spends all of her time working to understand local issues, like the removal of the Eklutna dam and the need for funding for the Port of Alaska. She said that the Gaza situation is out of her lane and she doesn’t feel comfortable weighing in. There are humanitarian crises all over the world, she added, and the Assembly doesn’t insert itself into them.
Assembly Kevin Cross was a hard no. In Anchorage, “our house is on fire, we’re choking on our own smoke, and we’re virtue signaling. There have never been people showing up for anything — rapes and murders … there’s pain in our own streets being ignored while we arrogantly tell people across the globe what they should do.”
Assembly Chairman Chris Constant had to call for the room to come back to order several times as the pro-Hamas crowd shouted their disapproval.
They were angry that the final draft of the resolution acknowledged Israel’s right to exist and defend itself and that Hamas is a known terrorist organization, acknowledged as such by the United Nations.
At the end of the meeting, during public testimony, the pro-Hamas Party for Socialism and Liberation lined up to state their objections to the softened resolution, accusing some members of the Assembly of being condescending. Michael Patterson, one of the leaders of the PSL, said that members of the Assembly had defamed the group and lied about the group’s enthusiastic and joyful response to the killing of a Jewish man who was holding a sign in Los Angeles at a pro-Israel rally, only to be hit in the head by a Palestinian terrorism supporter.
This is an update on the Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP) attempt to access individual energy use data for Chugach Electric Association and Enstar Natural Gas Co. customers.
REAP’s excuse for making the request was to “assist” both Chugach and Enstar by constructing new rate structures to “encourage” an unwilling and uninterested public to transition to renewable energy. Must Read Alaska ran a story from the Washington Free Beacon on this Feb 29.
REAP made their request to the Regulatory Commission of Alaska Dec. 18, 2023 and Jan. 29, 2024. The filing was in response to a pair of ongoing tariff revision dockets (cases) before the RCA (U-23-047 and U-23-048) initially filed July 3, 2023.
The RCA slapped down REAP’s request on Feb 26, 2024, denying their motion to compel Chugach and Enstar to provide customer data. The rate case continues before the RCA. Both orders are embedded in this piece.
This has been quite a rate case. All Railbelt electrical co-ops are involved, as is Enstar. The State of Alaska Department of Law and the feds are involved. Other entities include UAA, AARP Alaska, Ethan Schutt (CIRI?), JL Properties, and at least two renewable energy non-governmental organizations.
This takes us to a discussion about conflict of interest. Rate cases are expensive, costing the utilities tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars to pursue / defend. Any other entity entering the fray costs the utility, and in turn the utility customers, more money. REAP’s participation cost someone, perhaps many someones an unspecified amount of additional time and money.
It could be worse, I suppose, as REAP lists Matanuska Electric Association, Alaska Village Electric Cooperative and Kotzebue Electric Association as Board members under “Utility Constituency.”
The immediate question that comes to mind is: When did Nordlund know REAP was going to intervene in the ongoing rate case? How far before Dec. 28, 2023, did he know about it? Most importantly, when did he tell his fellow Chugach Board members that an organization in which he held a leadership position was going to intervene in the ongoing rate case and demand private customer information?
I asked the Chugach Board these questions via e-mail on Feb. 29. Have not heard back from them as yet. Somehow don’t think I will.
How will the Chugach Board handle this and future conflicts of interest? What do they plan to do the next time an outside group asks for customer data they are not entitled to? Better yet, why did the Board fail to notify Chugach members (customers) REAP made this attempt?
Given the active involvement of REAP in recent Chugach Board elections (they endorsed three candidates last year), it is only a matter of time before they hold a majority on the Board.
Once they do so, they control the Chugach Electric Association, as the Board hires and fires the CEO. Next time around, Chugach may not be so reluctant to provide private information to a group of committed greens for their political purposes.
Maybe it is time for the governor and Legislature to consider shutting this little game down before they do some real damage to reliable energy in the Railbelt.
Alex Gimarc lives in Anchorage since retiring from the military in 1997. His interests include science and technology, environment, energy, economics, military affairs, fishing and disabilities policies. His weekly column “Interesting Items” is a summary of news stories with substantive Alaska-themed topics. He was a small business owner and Information Technology professional.
Donald Trump’s win in Alaska’s GOP Presidential Preference Poll on Tuesday invigorated his supporters and infuriated his detractors.
Alaska Republicans had the most impressive result in the nation for Donald Trump on Tuesday, with 89% of those participating voting for him. That makes Alaska the top state for Trump among the 15 that participated in Super Tuesday.
Only Nevada, which held its Republican caucus on Feb. 19, has posted a higher percentage of support for Trump, at 99%. In the Nevada state-run primary, which does not count toward delegates, Nikki Haley had brought in 30% of the vote, while 63% voted for “none of these.” Trump was not on the official ballot in Nevada.
On Super Tuesday, Alabama followed Alaska with 83% voting for Trump in that state’s primary, where nearly 600,000 people took part. Oklahoma came in at 82%.
Kelly Tshibaka, Alaska director for the Trump campaign, gave credit to Alaskans for taking part in the democratic process:
“I want to express many thanks to those who came to vote and the many faithful volunteers that served at the polls. Republicans across the U.S. have shown overwhelming support for President Trump, and Alaska is no exception. I’m confident President Trump will continue to ride this wave of momentum to victory this November,” Tshibaka said.
Haley suspended her campaign on Wednesday morning in her home state of South Carolina but did not endorse Trump, an indication that she may work against a GOP victory in November.
“It is now up to Donald Trump to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond it who did not support him,” Haley said. “And I hope he does that. At its best, politics is about bringing people into your cause, not turning them away.”
President Joe Biden welcomed her supporters, saying, “Donald Trump made it clear he doesn’t want Nikki Haley’s supporters. I want to be clear: There is a place for them in my campaign.”
On Tuesday night, Biden had a dark vision of the future under Trump: “Are we going to keep moving forward or will we allow Donald Trump to drag us backwards into the chaos, division, and darkness that defined his term in office? If Donald Trump returns to the White House, all of this progress is at risk. He is driven by grievance and grift.”
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who supports Trump, had Alaska’s future on his mind: ““Alaskans are smart — they saw how well Alaska was treated by the Trump administration, and they’ve seen how our state is being treated by the Biden administration. I commend everyone for taking part to help make a change for Alaska. Regardless of who your choice was on Super Tuesday, thank you for being part of history in our great state. And thank you to all the volunteers who were so helpful to everyone who came through the doors of the presidential preference poll.”
The Republican National Committee congratulated Trump: “Congratulations to President Trump – the presumptive Republican nominee for President of the United States!”
Sen. Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader, endorsed Trump on Wednesday morning, saying, “It is abundantly clear that former President Trump has earned the requisite support of Republican voters to be our nominee for President of the United States. It should come as no surprise that, as nominee, he will have my support.”
McConnell said he and Trump had worked well together, and “I look forward to the opportunity of switching from playing defense against the terrible policies the Biden administration has pursued to a sustained offense geared towards making a real difference in improving the lives of the American people.”
View our extensive coverage of Alaska’s Super Tuesday events at this link:
Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, said Haley should support Trump as the presumptive nominee in this spicy interview, in which she told a BBC reporter to “f*** off” after the reporter called Trump supporters “conspiracy theorists” and asked her, “Why don’t you tell us about Jewish space lasers.” Watch here:
NEW: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tells BBC ‘journalist’ Emily Maitlis to “f**k off”after Maitlis tried asserting that MTG was a conspiracy theorist.
Maitlis: “Can you tell me why so many people that support Donald Trump love conspiracy theories, including yourself?”
In Alaska the total is Trump with 89% at 9,243, Haley 1,226, Ramaswamy 45
Ketchikan District 1: Trump 308, Haley 33, Ramaswamy 2
Sitka District 2: Trump 2
Juneau District 3: Trump 176, Haley 33
Juneau District 4: Trump 133, Haley 24
Juneau votes from out of district: Trump 32, Haley 18
Kodiak District 5: Trump 2
Homer District 6: Trump 229, Haley 12, Ramaswamy 1
Kasilof District 6: Trump 222, Haley 12
Kenai District 7: Trump 188, Haley 17, Ramaswamy 1
Soldotna District 7: Trump 428, Haley 32, Ramaswamy 1
Note: Soldotna’s 427 actually included 162 D8 voters
Sterling District 8: Trump 402, Haley 24, Ramaswamy 1
Nikiski District 8: Trump 685, Haley 44
Anchorage District 9: Trump 408, Haley 112, Ramaswamy 6
Anchorage District 10: Trump 192, Haley 48, Ramaswamy 1
Anchorage District 11: Trump 349, Haley 78, Ramaswamy 4
Anchorage District 12: Trump 193, Haley 31, Ramaswamy 3
Anchorage District 13: Trump 149, Haley 23
Anchorage District 14: Trump 101, Haley 23
Anchorage District 15: Trump 274, Haley 58, Ramaswamy 1
Anchorage District 16: Trump 230, Haley 62, Ramaswamy 1
Anchorage District 17: Trump 77, Haley 25, Ramaswamy 3
Anchorage District 18: Trump 33, Haley 25, Ramaswamy 3
Anchorage District 19: Trump 9, Haley 1
Anchorage District 20: Trump 166, Haley 17
Anchorage District 21: Trump 275, Haley 58
Anchorage District 22: Trump 127, Haley 19
Eagle River District 23: Trump 432, Haley 89, Ramaswamy 4
Eagle River District 24: Trump 434, Haley 69, Ramaswamy 2
Palmer District 25: Trump 539, Haley 42, Ramaswamy 3
Wasilla District 26: Trump 390, Haley 12, Ramaswamy 2
Wasilla District 27: Trump 389, Haley 18, Ramaswamy 2
Palmer/Wasilla District 28: Trump 382, Haley 14
Valdez/Wasilla District 29: Trump 344, Haley 31, Ramaswamy 1
Wasilla District 30: Trump 201, Haley 5
Out of Fairbanks, these unofficial results:
District 31: Trump 216, Haley 58, Ramaswamy 1
District 32: Trump 164, Haley 18
Fairbanks District 33: Trump 331, Haley 29
District 34: Trump 313, Haley 48, Ramaswamy 1
District 35: Trump 252, Haley 48, Ramaswamy 1
District 36: Trump 257, Haley 30, Ramaswamy 1
It’s the biggest Election Day for 2024 — until the August primary and November general election. 854 Republican delegates are being decided today.
The Presidential Preference Poll for Alaska Republicans have opened and people are lining up to choose their preferred candidates.
We will be updating this story throughout the night, with results from Alaska expected after 8 pm, when the Presidential Preference Poll ends and results are announced by the Alaska Republican Party. National results are being updated continuously below.
Former Sen. Jerry Ward participated in the Presidential Preference Poll in Fairbanks.
4:50 pm Fairbanks update: Spotted at the Presidential Preference Poll was former Sen. Jerry Ward, who had just finished burying his 92-year-old aunt in Nenana, and was on his way to a memorial moose stew potlatch in her honor. He had to vote out of district due to circumstances.
Check back to get updates as we post them below, as they come in from Alaska and around the country.
At Grace Christian Presidential Preference Poll at 4 pm on Super Tuesday in Anchorage, Carmela Warfield helps out a participant.
4 p.m. Grace Christian update: 20 minute line of cars to get into the parking lot. High turnout. Takes 10 minutes to go through the process. Spotted At Grace Christian, three candidates for Alaska Republican Party chair — Mike Robbins, Carmela Warfield, Nikki Rose.Also spotted: Retiring Party Chair Ann Brown, Power The Future Alaska Director Rick Whitbeck, activists Portia Noble, Jamie Donley.
Soldotna Republicans take part in the Presidential Preference Poll on Super Tuesday.
5 p.m. Wasilla update: The line stretches 40 people deep just to get in the door at the Wasilla Senior Center at 1301 South Century Circle. The wind is whipping but enthusiasm is high.
Line stretches out the door in Fairbanks for the Presidential Preference Poll on Super Tuesday.
5:20 pm Fairbanks update: By 3:15 p.m. there was a line from the Carlson Center door all the way outside to the curb. Once inside, one participant reported “many familiar faces and conversations, it was a wonderful crowd, dozens of volunteers. IMO the crowd was energized and enthusiastic. Delighted to have the chance to be participating.”
Volunteers Liz Vazquez and Randy Ruedrich Jr. at the Jewel Lake Church of the Nazarene voting location for the Presidential Preference Poll in Anchorage.
The winning candidate needs 1,215 delegates of a possible 2,429 to become the Republican nominee. Donald Trump goes into Super Tuesday with 273, while Haley has accumulated 43.
Republicans line up at Church of the Nazarene to take part in the Presidential Preference Poll on Super Tuesday.
Kelly Tshibaka, state director for the Trump campaign, casts her ballot at the Presidential Preference Poll at Grace Christian in Anchorage on Super Tuesday.
Alabama, Trump 88, Haley 9, 50 delegates at stake
Alaska, 29 delegates at stake
Arkansas, Trump 76, Haley 19, 40 delegates at stake
California, Trump 75, Haley 21, 169 delegates at stake
California also has a jungle primary to determine who will take the place of the late Dianne Feinstein; the top two vote getters will advance regardless of party. They’ll certainly be Democrats Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey, and probably not Democratic Rep. Katie Porter.
Colorado, Trump 63, Haley, 33, 37 delegates at stake
Maine, Trump 72, Haley 26, 20 delegates at stake
On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Maine did not have the authority to keep Trump off of the Republican primary ballot, as its Secretary of State, a Democrat, was attempting to do.
Massachusetts, Trump 61, Haley 36, 40 delegates at stake
Minnesota, Trump 69, Haley 29, 39 delegates at stake
North Carolina, Trump 74, Haley 23, 74 delegates at stake
Republican Mark Robinson won the North Carolina gubernatorial primary.
Oklahoma, Trump 82, Haley 16, 43 delegates at stake
Tennessee, Trump 77, Haley 20, 58 delegates at stake
Texas, Trump 78, Haley 17, 150 delegates at stake
Brandon Hill, a Republican, won the 26th congressional district seat in Texas.
Utah, Trump 58, Haley 41, 40 delegates at stake
Vermont, Haley 50, Trump 46, 17 delegates at stake
Virginia, Trump 63, Haley 35, 48 delegates at stake
Enthusiasm high in Wasilla at the Republican Presidential Preference Poll at 5 pm on Super Tuesday.
Kenai Peninsula Republicans wait in line to cast their vote in the Republican Presidential Preference Poll in Sterling on Super Tuesday.
Juneau Republicans use a vacant spot at Nugget Mall to conduct the Presidential Preference Poll on Super Tuesday.
Democrat primaries
Breaking: Biden is losing the Democratic caucus in American Samoa to a little-known candidate, Democrat Jason Palmer. Decision Desk HQ made the call after confirming the results with the Democratic Party of American Samoa.
Iowa: President Biden has won the Iowa Democratic presidential caucus. It was a mail-in-only caucus method.
