Politics

Trial in defeated state Rep. Nageak's election lawsuit will kick off Tuesday

A trial has been scheduled for next week for Barrow Democratic Rep. Ben Nageak's challenge to his Democratic primary election defeat by challenger Dean Westlake.

Anchorage Superior Court Judge Andrew Guidi on Friday said the trial will start Tuesday and run for several days. Guidi will decide the case himself without a jury.

Nageak and four voters in his district in far north Alaska are contesting the election results after reports of problems and irregularities at the polls.

Attorneys for Westlake wanted more time to prepare for the trial, but state Division of Elections Director Josie Bahnke said in a sworn statement Wednesday the state would need a final ruling — including on any appeals to the Alaska Supreme Court — by Oct. 14. The general election is Nov. 8.

Bahnke said her division will print 10,600 copies of two different versions of the general election ballot for Nageak's district, where he and Westlake were the only House candidates.

One version of the ballot assumes the courts will uphold Westlake's victory and be printed with him running unopposed. The other will have Westlake's and Nageak's in case a court rules the primary must be redone.

Bahnke said ballots must be confirmed by Oct. 14 so they can be mailed to absentee, early and special needs voters in time to meet a legal deadline.

Nageak has filed a separate legal challenge in Supreme Court, but that case is awaiting the outcome of the lower court proceeding and will be merged with any appeal, said Stacey Stone, an attorney for Nageak.

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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