Politics

Westlake lead over Nageak shrinks to 3 votes in Democratic primary for far-north House seat

The gap separating the two Democratic primary candidates for Alaska's northernmost House district shrank Tuesday from five votes to three after a new count of absentee and early ballots.

Challenger Dean Westlake of Kotzebue now has 780 votes to 777 for Rep. Ben Nageak of Barrow, according to results posted at 5 p.m. Tuesday. The previous count had Westlake ahead 765 to 760.

The region's absentee ballot review board, which meets at an elections office in Nome, counted about 30 ballots Tuesday afternoon.

Dozens more ballots — absentee, special needs and questioned ballots — are expected to be reviewed in a final count Friday.

The results of the race, the closest in the Aug. 16 primary election, were thrown into question last week when reports emerged of irregularities in the far north village of Shungnak and in one of two precincts in Barrow.

In Shungnak, voters were given both primary ballots — one with Republican candidates and a second with candidates from other political parties — even though they were only supposed to get one.

Officials say they're reviewing their procedures, and will consider how to "remedy" the results if problems in Shungnak appear to have changed the election's outcome, said Josie Bahnke, the state elections director.

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"If the final tally of ballots indicates that the poll worker error altered or could have altered the election outcome, then the division's going to be looking at options to remedy that fact," Bahnke said in a phone interview Tuesday. She wouldn't say what those options could be.

Bahnke was scheduled to be a witness Monday at a hearing on the primary election by the Senate State Affairs Committee, chaired by outgoing Sen. Bill Stoltze, R-Chugiak.

Nageak, in a brief phone interview Tuesday, said he was waiting for all the outstanding votes to be counted before deciding what to do next.

"I'm not going to make any decisions until I know what's going on," he said. "I'm just standing here calmly twiddling my thumbs and saying 'whoo-ee.'"

Westlake didn't immediately respond to a request for comment late Tuesday.

 

Nathaniel Herz

Anchorage-based independent journalist Nathaniel Herz has been a reporter in Alaska for nearly a decade, with stints at the Anchorage Daily News and Alaska Public Media. Read his newsletter, Northern Journal, at natherz.substack.com

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