Waiting for the Numbers in Alaska - an update from Mudflats

[Blue_In_AK]

http://mudflats.wordpress.com/2008/11/12/waiting-for-the-numbers-in-alaska/

There are 90,000+ ballots to be counted, and more coming in every day.

Absentee ballots: 60,950 (postmarked by midnight on 11/4)
Early voting ballots: 9,507
Question (provisional) ballots: 20,178 (voters who voted outside their proper district)

Grand Total: 90,635+ (with more arriving every day)

Today the state will count 42,991 of the absentee ballots and 9,333 of the early votes. The rest will come later, hopefully by Friday. But no promises.

The districts that will not be counted today seem to be favoring Begich.

District Begich Stevens Margin
2 54.2 40.9 +13.3
5 55.7 38.0 +17.7
6 47.8 46.3 +1.5
36 53.2 41.7 +11.5
37 50.0 45.9 +4.1
38 65.3 30.6 +34.7
39 58.3 38.1 +20.2
40 58.8 37.7 +21.1

So even if Begich does not overtake Stevens in the vote count today, those remaining districts still leave hope. An automatic recount is only triggered if the votes are exactly the same. However, candidates, or a group of 10 citizens can petition for a recount if the votes are within one half of one percentage point of each other.

And, of course, we’ll be looking to see if the House race, or local races take any significant changes. Two wonderful local Democrats, Pete Petersen and Chris Tuck are both ahead but by a very slim margin.

It’s 2:00 in Alaska, and still no numbers coming in. We weren’t sure if the numbers would come in one lump sum at the end of the day, or if they would release results throughout the day. I’m guessing if we haven’t seen anything by now, we’ll get the final daily tally this evening.

(stares at clock)

[Tiggeroshii]

1. check this one out

Stevens only has a 971 vote lead now...

I believe that's down from 4,000 before

http://www.elections.alaska.gov/08general/data/results.htm

[Blue_In_AK]

2. Excellent.

Yes, it is down considerably. I really want to see that McCain/Obama number change though. The 2004 election was 61/36 Bush over Kerry, and it's been stuck at 61/36 McCain over Obama ever since the first precincts started coming in election night. It just seems way too coincidental that the results are so similar when there are more nonaffiliated and undeclared registered voters here than Republicans and Democrats combined.

[uppityperson]

3. List of voting districts... (been wondering who/where so found this)

http://www.elections.alaska.gov/maps.php
pdf state map http://www.elections.alaska.gov/maps/regional/statewide.pdf

http://www.elections.alaska.gov/polling.php
List of where districts are and where polling places are



And this...
http://www.bbvforums.org/forums/messages/129/202.html
Region I - Districts 1-5 and 33-36.
Southeast Alaska, Cordova, Kodiak Island, Kenai Peninsula, Western Cook Inlet

Region II - Districts 13-32
Municipality of Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Whittier, Hope

Region III - Districts 6-12
Fairbanks and Greater Fairbanks Area, Central and Southern Interior Alaska, Greater Valdez, Eastern Mat-Su

Region IV - Districts 37-40.
Northern Alaska, Western Coastal Alaska, Aleutians

[uppityperson]

4. Communities referenced in OP..., not every community listed

2 Sitka/Wrangell/Petersburg/Elfin Cove
5 Skagway/Angoon/Craig/Gustavus/Hoonah
6 Artic Village/Central/Eagle/Tok/Manley Hot Springs
36 Kodiak/area
37 Dillingham-Aleutians
38 Bethel/Yk delta communities
39 Nome-Hooper Bay
40 Barrow/Wainwright/Anaktuvuk Pass

[Blue_In_AK]

5. Report from The Immoral Minority

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/

<quotes Anchorage Daily News article>

"The most remote areas do not have daily mail service, which slows the process, Fenumiai said."

I heard Ms. Fenuman make this same point on a local radio talk show this morning. And I think that most progressives are very aware of that. Our problem is the question of why there are so many early votes that are not yet counted, because the reason that has been given is that ALL early votes cast after October 30 were saved, and would not to be counted until after November 4th. Which just seems odd.

As is the question of WHERE all of these absentee ballots are coming from. They now number 61,000, which represents a rather large number of registered voters.

And since Alaska has a history of election hanky panky it is in the interest of everybody to keep a close eye on this. Oh well I will try to be patient and wait and see what the day brings.

BREAKING NEWS!!! I just got off of the phone with Celtic Diva who is watching the absentee and early ballot counting and she informs me that Mark Begich is only 700 votes behind convicted felon Ted Stevens. Now that is very good news!

And in the close race for House District 19 Republican Bob Roses has clearly been defeated by Democrat Pete Peterson, which gives us at least one more progressive seat in the House.