The withdrawal deadline for a candidate to remove his or her name from the regular primary election ballot was Saturday, June 25. Several removed their names from consideration, while 21 did not take action to drop out by the deadline.
Tara Sweeney, one of the candidates for the special primary election, did not drop out for the regular primary, and instead said she will stay on the regular primary ballot, as she intends to be a come-back candidate. She had received less than 6% of the vote.
Among those removing their names from the regular congressional race:
John Coghill
Chris Constant
Bill Hibler
Alan Gross
Jeff Lowenfels
Mikel Melander
Mike Milligan
Josh Revak
Adam Wool
That leaves 21 names on the regular primary ballot, including Sweeney, whose team sued the Division of Elections to have her included on the special general election ballot that would allow her to compete for the remainder of Congressman Don Young’s term, until January.
A Superior Court denied the demand from the Sweeney camp, and the Supreme Court agreed with the lower court.
Meanwhile, special general election at this point has just three candidates: Sarah Palin, Nick Begich, and Mary Peltola.
The Alaska Supreme Court issued its opinion on Saturday morning, agreeing with the lower court that Alaska law does not allow Tara Sweeney to move onto the “final four” special general election ballot, just because one of the winners of the special primary election has dropped out.
The lawsuit had been brought by three surrogates for Sweeney — Alaska Native women who are shareholders in Alaska Native Corporations. The three had argued that Sweeney, as a fifth-place finisher, is entitled to be in the final four ranked-choice ballot on Aug. 16, because Ballot Measure 2 clearly intended that four people advance to the final ballot.
In many races in Alaska, there are not four people in the primary, and in some races only two people are running, thus negating the argument that the general election ballot always must have four people on it. But the justices did not make that argument or describe their reasoning for why they support the decision of the director of the Division of Elections. Gail Fenumiai had said that the statute governing elections says a candidate must drop out 64 days before the general election for the substitution provision to be applied.
This cements the congressional race into a three-way race between Sarah Palin, Nick Begich, and Mary Peltola.
The special hurry-up election is being held because Congressman Don Young died on March 18, leaving Alaska without representation in Congress. The winner of the special election will step into that role until January, when the next regular congressional representative is sworn in.
For the second time in a week, U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan has separated himself from Sen. Lisa Murkowski on an important matter, this time supporting the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in overturning Roe vs. Wade, the law that created federal control over abortion law.
“I support the Supreme Court’s decision today, which returns the authority to regulate abortion ‘to the people and their elected representatives,’’ Sullivan said in a statement. Murkowski has stated she is vehemently opposed to the ruling.
“I recognize that abortion is a profoundly emotional issue upon which many Alaskans have strongly held views and serious disagreements. The decision today does not by any stretch end that debate. However, it does take the debate out of the realm of federal courts, and gives it back to the states and the people of our country, where I believe it belongs. The people and their representatives, not federal judges, are in the best position to deliberate and decide such an important issue,” Sullivan said.
“As a pro-life Catholic, I believe there is no greater gift than that of life. Going forward, I will continue to support legislation protecting the most vulnerable in society, including by expanding quality child care and opportunities for adoption. Working with all Alaskans, I will continue to focus on these issues,” he said.
Earlier this week, Sullivan voted against a bill that will allow states to create “red flag” laws, which give authorities the right to take away the firearms of citizens they deem dangerous. Murkowski voted in favor of the bill, which passed the Senate and the House and is heading for the president’s desk for a signature. President Joe Biden has indicated he is eager to sign the bill.
That pending law, approved by Murkowski and majority Democrats, appears to be in contradiction to a Supreme Court ruling this week that prohibited New York State from disallowing people to carry concealed weapons. Writing for the majority, the court ruled that courts must assess whether a gun law “is consistent with this nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.”
“Only if a firearm regulation is consistent with this nation’s historical tradition may a court conclude that the individual’s conduct falls outside the Second Amendment,” Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in the lead opinion. For example, jurisdictions can sustain public safety restrictions such as banning firearms from areas like schools or courthouses.
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy issued the following statement after today’s decision by the United States Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade:
“I like many Alaskans, am pro life. I also recognize that many Alaskans are pro choice. The recent decision by the Supreme Court returns the issue of abortion back to the states.
“I believe this presents an opportunity for the people of Alaska, not a handful of elected officials or appointed judges, to decide the future of abortion in Alaska.
“I will therefore be introducing a resolution for a proposed constitutional amendment to the legislature in the next session to answer the question whether abortion shall, or not be a constitutionally protected right.
“I have always had faith in the people of Alaska to make the right decision when it comes to our constitution and protecting our fundamental rights and this issue is no different. My position on this issue has been made clear. Alaskans should have the opportunity to make their position clear as well.”
Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed Akis Gialopsos acting commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. Outgoing DNR Commissioner Corri Feige announced she was leaving the department earlier this month to spend more time with her family in the Lower-48.
“I know from his time on my staff that Akis Gialopsos has both the management skills, and knowledge of resource development issues to run the department effectively,” Dunleavy said.
Gialopsos currently serves as deputy chief of staff and legislative director for Governor Dunleavy. He was also chief of staff to the president of the Alaska State Senate during the 31st Alaska Legislature. Prior to that, Gialopsos served as the committee aide to the Senate Resources Committee for the 29thand 30th Alaska Legislatures.
Gialopsos is a lifelong Alaskan. Born and raised in Anchorage, he attended Gladys Wood Elementary and Dimond High School, before moving to Greece and receiving his diploma. He studied at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, where he participated in the UAA Speech and Debate Program.
Gialopsos becomes acting commissioner effective July 1, 2022.
Democratic Congressman Charlie Crist, the former Republican governor of Florida who’s running once again as a Democrat hoping to defeat incumbent Gov. Ron DeSantis, said Friday that Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh should be impeached if they lied under oath during their Senate confirmation hearings.
He provided no evidence of either Gorsuch or Kavanaugh lying under oath.
Crist’s call comes after Gorsuch and Kavanaugh joined in a majority U.S. Supreme Court ruling to overturn two landmark abortion cases – Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The decision returns decisions on the legality of abortion back to the states.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, both Democrats, accused the conservative justices of lying without mentioning them by name.
“Today’s ruling makes clear that Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh lied to Congress when they testified, under oath, that in their view Roe v. Wade was settled precedent,” Crist said in a Facebook post. “Perjury is a crime. If perjury is found to have occurred, the correct remedy is impeachment.”
In a joint statement, Pelosi and Schumer said in part, “Several of these conservative Justices, who are in no way accountable to the American people, have lied to the U.S. Senate, ripped up the Constitution and defiled both precedent and the Supreme Court’s reputation – all at the expense of tens of millions of women who could soon be stripped of their bodily autonomy and the constitutional rights they’ve relied on for half a century.”
Three justices who voted to overturn Roe were appointed by President Donald Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate: Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.
Trump’s first nominee to the Supreme Court, Gorsuch, “refused to take a position on Roe,” NPR reports. During his confirmation hearing in 2017, Gorsuch replied to a question posed by U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., saying he “would have walked out the door” if Trump had asked him to vote to overturn Roe, NPR points out.
In 2018, Kavanaugh said in his opening remarks that Roe had been “settled as a precedent of the Supreme Court,” and was “entitled the respect under principles of stare decisis.”
Justice Samuel Alito, who wrote the majority opinion, was joined by the three justices appointed by Trump and Chief Justice John Roberts. Alito wrote: “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division. It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”
He also argued, “a right to abortion is not deeply rooted in the Nation’s history and traditions. On the contrary, an unbroken tradition of prohibiting abortion on pain of criminal punishment persisted from the earliest days of the common law until 1973. …
“Roe’s constitutional analysis was far outside the bounds of any reasonable interpretation of the various constitutional provisions to which it vaguely pointed.”
Trump told Fox News the ruling followed the Constitution, “giving rights back when they should have been given long ago. This brings everything back to the states where it has always belonged.”
Senator Lisa Murkowski said in a statement said she strongly supports a woman’s right to choose an abortion to end a pregnancy. Earlier this year, she introduced the Reproductive Choice Act (S. 3713), which would prevent women’s reproductive choices from being weakened or eliminated and would codify the almost 50 year old Roe v. Wade decision as the law of the land.
Given the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, Sen. Murkowski’s leadership on this issue is now more important than ever, she said in her statement.
“Alaska voters should all see the clear and undeniable fact that Lisa Murkowski is working hard to protect women’s health care. Preserving the right to choose will take bipartisan action and leadership. Senator Murkowski has a proven track record of effectiveness and the seniority to work with her colleagues to reverse today’s dangerous precedent,” said Murkowsi’s campaign spokesperson Shea Siegert.
“Today the Supreme Court went against 50 years of precedent in choosing to overturn Roe v. Wade. The rights under Roe that many women have relied on for decades—most notably a woman’s right to choose—are now gone or threatened in many states,” the senator said.
“Alaskan courts have interpreted abortion rights as protected under our State Constitution, but with this decision, women in other parts of the country will face a different reality that limits their health decisions, even in extreme circumstances,” Murkowski said.
“In the wake of this ruling, it is up to Congress to respond. I introduced legislation in February to protect women’s reproductive rights as provided in Roe, and I am continuing to work with a broader group to restore women’s freedom to control their own health decisions wherever they live. Legislation to accomplish that must be a priority,” she said.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy has appointed Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Jason Brune to the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation’s Board of Trustees.
Brune will replace outgoing DNR Commissioner Corri Feige. Commissioner Brune joined the Dunleavy Administration in December, 2018. He has served in a variety of roles in both the public and private sectors, including one of Alaska’s regional native corporations. The appointment takes effect on July 1, 2022.
Update: The plaintiffs have appealed the ruling to the Alaska Supreme Court.
An Anchorage Superior Court judge on Friday ruled against an attempt by a group associated with the Sweeney for Congress campaign their quest to add Sweeney’s name to the special general election ballot.
Sweeney finished in fifth place in the special primary election for U.S. House. But then the third-place finisher, Al Gross, suddenly dropped out of contention on Monday, leaving just three names on the special general election ballot for Aug. 16: Sarah Palin, Nick Begich, and fourth-place finisher Mary Peltola.
Superior Court Judge William Morse sided with the Division of Elections, whose director said that nowhere in law does it allow a fifth-place finisher to move onto the ballot, just because someone who made the ballot has requested he or she be removed from the ballot. The decision may be appealed to the Supreme Court, but the Division of Elections is on a strict schedule to get the election certified and to get the ballots for the Aug. 16 ballot printed by the time the law requires.
Meanwhile, Gross had thrown his support to both Sweeney and Peltola, both Alaska Natives.
Sweeney is still technically on the regular primary ballot for the U.S. House, along with 29 other people who are still on the ballot, including Palin, Begich and Peltola. The deadline to withdraw from the regular primary is Saturday.
But as of now, just three are in the special election to fill out the remaining term of the late Congressman Don Young.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
