Ambler tosses out election results

Almost two weeks after municipalities across the state voted on city offices, officials in the Northwest town of Ambler are at the center of a tumult.

Voters in the town of about 250 people voted out all five of the city’s sitting council members.

Now, the council is refusing to certify the results of the election and is calling for another vote. The news was first reported by KTVA-TV in Anchorage.

According to an audio recording of the election canvass board obtained by KTVA, there were no absentee ballots available for the election. That makes the election invalid, the council decided.

Tristen Pattee, who won his city council race, told KTVA that’s a simple excuse to erase the results of an unfavorable election.

The special election do-over has been scheduled for Nov. 3.

The Alaska Division of Elections does not oversee city or borough elections, which are in the charge of local officials.

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