Cities and villages across the state held local elections Tuesday, choosing new politicians and shaping local laws. Here's a sampling of what they decided, region by region, according to unofficial vote tallies reported Wednesday:
MAT-SU BOROUGH
Valley voters approved about $246.7 million in school and road bonds. The new construction projects are expected to cost the average homeowner more than $230 in taxes each year, according to borough figures.
In the Assembly races, Steve Colligan leads planning commissioner Pat Johnson in the race to replace Mark Ewing of Wasilla. Colligan holds about 55 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results.
In the school board contest, incumbent Erick Cordero beat Lynette Warhus 3,898-2,624. Darcie Salmon was running unopposed for an Assembly seat while Ole Larson ran unopposed for the school board.
Voters approved the $214.5 million school bond by a roughly 6 percent margin, according to the early figures. The bond will pay for school construction projects over a five-year period, including $92 million for schools in the fast-growing Knik-Goose Bay Road area.
The $32.2 million road bonds package passed by about 59 percent to 41 percent.
Someone with a $208,000 home -- the average median assessed value of Valley homes in 2011 -- will pay an additional $231.29 a year in taxes to cover the bonds, according to the borough.
About 1,700 questioned and absentee ballots remained to be counted, according to unofficial borough results.
BARROW
A controversial proposal to create a city-run liquor store in Barrow failed 609-485, the mayor says.
Voters rejected the effort by a nearly 12 percent margin, according to unofficial figures provided by Mayor Bob Harcharek. The proposal, placed on the ballot by petition, would have allowed local liquor sales in the North Slope city for the first time since at least 1997.
Only 90 absentee and questioned ballots remained to be counted, Harcharek said.
The liquor store could have poured $500,000 to $1.5 million a year into city coffers, he said, but many Barrow residents worried it would have increased alcohol-abuse and alcohol-related deaths in the community.
NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH
The North Slope Borough mayor's race looks to be a close one. Only two dozen votes separate former borough Assemblywoman Charlotte Brower (559 votes) from George Ahmaogak Sr. (535 votes).
But there are also 543 write-in votes -- many likely cast for Kaktovik tribal administrator Fenton Rexford, who is running a write-in campaign.
Those figures were missing a small number of votes from Point Lay, said Borough Clerk Jeannie Brower. Those ballots were expected to arrive by plane and would be counted by machine in Barrow, she said.
"It's not going to affect the results that much because there is hardly anybody in Point Lay that voted. It's just going to put a scratch on the outcome," Brower said.
Ahmaogak, a former five-term mayor, is the husband of Maggie Ahmaogak, who was indicted in September on charges of stealing from the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission.
FAIRBANKS
Fairbanks North Star Borough voters rejected a proposal to impose emission standards for wood smoke. The initiative would have banned outdoor wood-fired boilers and all coal-burning devices within areas that don't meet federal air-quality standards.
(Ever gone running outdoors in Fairbanks in the winter? You come home smelling like a wood stove.)
About 60 percent of voters said no to the proposal.
Former state Rep. John Davies won election to the Borough Assembly with 53 percent of the vote in a three-way race with incumbent Joe Blanchard (25 percent) and Joshua Bennett (21 percent.)
In other races:
• Borough Assembly seat D: Michael Dukes is beating Van Lawrence with 53 percent of the vote.
• Borough Assembly seat E: Guy Sattley defeated a crowded field, capturing about a third of the vote. He's followed by Ed King (22 percent), Aaron Bennett (17 percent) and Leslie McFarlane (14 percent.)
JUNEAU
A proposal to charge a 15-cent tax on plastic bags used by large retailers like Walmart and Fred Meyer failed big, with more than 69 percent of voters saying no. Voters extended a 3 percent sales tax by a 4,286 to 1,722 margin.
The tax pays for city services such as snow removal and road repair, as well as capital projects and youth activities, the Juneau Empire reports.
In other Juneau races:
• District 1 Assembly: Jesse Kiehl defeated Brad Fluetsch 3,535-1,630.
• Area wide Assembly: Carlton Smith leads Loren Jones 2,282-2,229.
WASILLA
Unofficial results show Mayor Verne Rupright is poised to win a second term.
He's leading council member Dianne Woodruff 453-284, with just 185 early, absentee and questioned ballots remaining to be counted, according to the website.
Council member Taffina Katkus is trailing in third place with 192 votes.
Read The Village, the ADN's blog about rural Alaska, at adn.com/thevillage. Twitter updates: twitter.com/adn_kylehopkins. Call Kyle Hopkins at 257-4334 or email him at khopkins@adn.com.
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