Empire Live: Unofficial results are in for New JACC grant, Assembly and school board

Summary: In the only contested race of the night, Deedie Sorensen and Emil Mackey seem to have won seats on the School Board. However, Martin Stepetin Sr. is still in the mix and had not conceded as of Tuesday night. Greg Smith likely won a three-year term on the city Assembly while incumbent Alicia Hughes-Skandijs seems poised for a one-year term.

Prop 1, the possible increase of the hotel-motel tax, is the only proposition to clearly pass. Proposition 2 was narrowly leaning toward failure as of Tuesday night, but absentee ballots could be a difference-maker. Proposition 3, which concerned a $4.5 million grant for the New JACC failed. Absentee ballots will be counted Friday. Official results will be announced Tuesday, Oct. 8.

Read our full story here: Prop 3 smacked down

Totals for the night. All 13 precincts reported.

Smith: 4017

Hughes-Skandijs: 3765

Top two School Board:

Sorensen: 2987

Mackey: 2239

Propositions

Prop 1 – Yes: 3607 No: 2699

Prop 2 – Yes: 3150 No: 3166

Prop 3 – Yes: 2602 No: 3743

9:04 p.m.

Only one district, Auke Bay, hasn’t reported in yet.

Nancy DeCherney, executive director of the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council, supporter of the new JACC said she was disappointed with the results, even if they are premature.

“I think we have a lot of work ahead of us but we’ll continue,” she said. “The hill just got a lot steeper.”

DeCherney said they would not be redesigning the new JACC.

“We’re just going to have to press forward with what we have,” she said. “We’re disappointed but we’re not going to give up.”

8:54 p.m.

There are 1,500 outstanding absentee ballots. There could be more outstanding ballots by mail or fax since today was the deadline. Official results will be announced Oct. 8, according to City Clerk Beth McEwen.

8:34 p.m.

Auke Bay

Smith 295

Hughes-Skandijs 273

Sorensen and Mackey 232 and 172

Prop 1: 281 for 189 opposed

Prop 2: 227 for 243 opposed

Prop 3: 185 for 288 opposed

Mendenhall Valley 1

Smith 260

Hughes-Skandijs 220

Sorensen and Mackey are top in School Board 190 and 140

Prop 1: 195 for 232 opposed

Prop 2: 158 for 272 opposed

Prop 3: 188 for 282 opposed

Mendenhall Valley 2

Smith 308

Hughes-Skandijs 282

Sorensen and Mackey 249 and 175

Prop 1: 424 for 265 opposed

Prop 2: 204 for 307 opposed

Prop 3: 138 for 375 opposed

Mendenhall Valley 3

Smith 311

Hughes-Skandijs 292

Sorensen and Mackey 256 and 194

Prop 1: 232 for 270 opposed

Prop 2: 203 for 306 opposed

Prop 3: 137 for 374 opposed

Mendenhall Valley 4

Smith 458

Hughes-Skandijs 417

Sorensen and Mackey 338 and 255

Prop 1: 403 for 356 opposed

Prop 2: 314 for 445 opposed

Prop 3: 239 for 531 opposed

Lynn Canal

Smith 290

Hughes-Skandijs 267

Sorensen and Mackey are leading the School Board race with 215 and 166

Prop 1: 281 for 191 opposed

Prop 2: 206 for 263 opposed

Prop 3: 188 for 282 opposed

Juneau Airport

Smith 210

Hughes-Skandijs 176

Sorensen and Mackey lead with 147 and 102

Prop 1: 148 for 184 opposed

Prop 2: 112 for 219 opposed

Prop 3: 79 for 253 opposed

North Douglas

Smith 301

Hughes-Skandijs 268

Sorensen and Mackey lead for School Board, 223 and 178 respectively

Prop 1: 287 for 169 opposed

Prop 2: 266 for 193 opposed

Prop 3: 230 for 228 opposed

In the Juneau 1 precinct

Smith, 332 and Hughes-Skandijs, 334

Sorenson and Stepetin are leaders with 261 and 172

Prop 1: 337 for 199 opposed

Prop 2: 318 for 213 opposed

Prop 3: 290 for 245 opposed

Juneau 2

Smith 496

Hughes-Skandijs 519

Sorensen and Stepetin for School Board at 338 and 333

Prop 1: 548 for 174 opposed

Prop 2: 524 for 198 opposed

Prop 3: 482 for 242 opposed

Lemon Creek

Smith 301, Hughes-Skandijs 268

Sorensen and Stepetin lead in the precinct with 144 and 116.

Prop 1: 133 for 205 opposed

Prop 2: 130 for 211 opposed

Prop 3: 97 for 246 opposed

8:25 p.m.

Two downtown Juneau precincts have reported in.

In Juneau 3

Smith 194, Hughes-Skandijs 180

School board: Sorensen and Stepetin are the leaders with 144 and 116.

Prop 1: 133 for 205 opposed

Prop 2: 130 for 211 opposed

Prop 3: 97 for 246 opposed

In Juneau 2 Smith has 493, Hughes-Skandijs 519.

For school board Sorensen and Stepetin has the most votes with 338 and 333.

Prop 1: 548 for 174 opposed

Prop 2: 524 for 198 opposed

Prop 3: 482 for 242 opposed

8:10 p.m.

Douglas results came in first.

Smith and Hughes-Skandijs are in tight race, Smith holds the advantage 387 to 367 338.

Sorensen and Mackey were the top vote getters with 261 and 198.

Prop 1 (Hotel/Motel Tax): 338 for 191 opposed.

Prop 2 (Bonds): 324 for 209 opposed.

Prop 3 (JACC grant) 273 for 259 opposed.

8:07 p.m.

Triem was the first candidate to election headquarters.

“It’s not quite as exciting, but it’s a lot less stressful, so I’ll take this,” Triem said.

Mackey is here now, too.

8 p.m.

Polls are now closed, and so far City Hall is empty. It’s just volunteers and reporters.

But as candidates come in, we’ll be talking to candidates and providing results as they come in. Polls close at 8 p.m., so it will be a while before those start to come in.

Once unofficial results are reported, here are some key questions to keep in mind.

For the Assembly race

Key question: Who will receive more votes Smith or Hughes-Skandijs?

Why it matters: The top vote-getter for District 1 will win a 3-year seat while second-place will get a 1-year seat.

For the school board race

Key question: Which two candidates will serve on Juneau School Board?

Why it matters: This is pretty cut and dry. School board is the night’s only truly contested race with four candidates squaring off for two seats.

For the ballot propositions

Key questions: What will happen to Prop 3? Did Prop 2 pass and Prop 1 fail?

Why it matters: In any scenario in which Prop 3 fails, money goes to Centennial Hall.

Prop 2 passing while Prop 1 fails is the worst-case scenario for taxpayers’ bottom lines.

Prop 1 is a hotel-motel tax increase that would mitigate the impact issuing up to $7 million in bonds would have on taxpayers. If the bonds pass and the revenue source doesn’t, taxpayers are on the hook for three times more.

7:48 p.m.

7:38 p.m.

City Hall is open and several high school volunteers are helping Election Central, aka the Assembly Chambers, get set up.

So far, three people have asked me if this is a polling place. It is not.

The nearest polling place to City Hall is probably the Alaska State Library, Archives and Museum.

Polls close at 8 p.m.

7 p.m.

T-minus one hour until polls close at 8 p.m. tonight.

Over at Northern Light Church downtown, it is busy!

“Between 5 and 6, it was practically non-stop, we had a line out the door,” Northern Light precinct chair Janet O’Malley said.

She called it “brisk” compared to previous municipal elections.

“We were pleasantly surprised,” she said.

Of the precinct’s 2,493 registered voters, 655 cast ballots today, plus 18 question ballots.

We’re headed over to Election Headquarters at City Hall in anticipation of polls closing at 8 p.m. Results should start flowing in live soon after. Stay tuned for updates!

6:30 p.m.

Over at the Nugget Mall, voters started casting ballots more after that 4 p.m. mark, workers say.

“It’s better than normal, really picked up about 4 o’clock, and it’s still going pretty good,” precinct worker Steve Lewis said. Lewis has worked as a precinct volunteer for nine years.

Three hundred and four registered voters cast ballots, plus 40 question ballots, at that location, workers said.

6:15 p.m.

Volunteers at the Mendenhall Valley Public Library polling location say they’ve been hit with a post-work day surge.

“It was steady all day until the 5 o’clock rush hit, then it w3as pretty busy,” Joan Mize, precinct worker, said.

Of the 2,513 voters registered in that precinct, 356 have voted, plus 60 more question ballots.

“I think there’s a pretty good turnout for this district,” said Carol Shriber, precinct chair.

5:20 p.m.

There hasn’t been a post-work day voting rush at Bartlett Regional Hospital.

So far 184 of 1,073 registered voters have voted, precinct workers said.

The numbers have been “low and steady,” said precinct worker Robin Paul.

Mayor Beth Weldon, who was working at the precinct, said the turnout was worse than she had hoped.

“We were hoping (the propositions) would draw people out, but the weather is also terrible,” Weldon said.

1:38 p.m.

“So far, so good,” said city clerk Beth McEwen.

Overseeing the election from city hall, McEwen said that today’s events are running smoothly so far.

“We want accurate rather than speedy results,” McEwen said.

Once polls close at 8 p.m., the election personnel will call in the results to the election center at city hall, McEwen said. The totals will be tallied from the 13 precincts and initial results will be announced. McEwen cautioned not to take those initial results as ironclad truth, however.

“I don’t look at election night,” McEwen said. “Election night is a great indicator of what you’re looking at, but anything can happen between then and certification.”

Certification will occur next Tuesday, after the Canvass Review Board has reviewed the execution of the election and all the question ballots and early votes have been tallied. Question ballots are ballots submitted in a precinct besides your own, said McEwen, and there can be hundreds of them. McEwen said there were also 2018 absentee ballots last year, an amusing coincidence.

11:21 a.m.

Voting has also been slow at Nugget Mall and at the University of Alaska Southeast Rec Center, with only about 50 voters through the mall and about 100 through the rec center.

“This is a slow start,” said Jack Chenoweth. “It’ll pick up.”

Chenoweth said that most of the college students and others would vote later in the day, after work or classes.

“We may see them on the way back,” Chenoweth said.

9:57 a.m.

“It seems kind of slow today,” said Carol Shriver, chairman of the voting station at Mendenhall Valley Public Library. “It’s been steady, but slowly steady.”

Her sixth year of working a voting station, Shriver said that the weather might have been slowing down voters, but that it’d likely pick up around lunch. Roughly 70 voters had been through by about 10 a.m.

“It’s been really smooth,” Shriver said. “Usually you get a lot of people.”

8:27 a.m.

Alicia Hughes-Skandijs and Greg Smith are the intersection of Egan Drive and the Douglas Bridge, waving signs at people going to work, despite foul, stormy weather. Supporters of Martin Stepetin and the New JACC were also present.

“This is more the fun part,” Hughes-Skandijs said, as she waved at passing cars with a half dozen supporters carrying signs. “We were here first, so we had our choice of corner.”

The four corners were colonized separately by supporters of different candidates, with supporters of the New JACC scattered throughout.

“I have to go to work, and then I’ll vote,” said Hughes-Skandijs. “I’ve never seen my name on a ballot before so that’ll be an interesting experience. Then the nerves begin.”

Despite foul weather, sign-wavers seemed to be in high spirits. Automobiles passing by frequently took time to honk their horns, thought it wasn’t precisely clear who they were honking for.

“I’m excited for the day at last,” Hughes-Skandijs said. “I feel pretty good. It’s been quite an experience. I just hope people go out and vote.”

Her opponent for the District 1 seat, Greg Smith, was across the street with a handful of his own supporters, and was in equally high spirits, with music playing out of the back of a car as he waved signs at passing cars.

“It’s been a super fun campaign. The dynamics of the race are interesting,” Smith said. “It’s been cool to get out and met people and get different perspectives and have good civil conversation even if we don’t agree.”

Smith and Hughes-Skandijs are in the running for two seats available in District 1; one for a three years term, and one for a single year. The recepient of more votes will take the three-year term.

7:34 a.m.

It’s Oct. 1 and voting has commenced. Dozens of voters have already cast their votes at the Douglas Library voting station.

“I have to be work at 8,” said voter Scarlett Gerber, as she came and voted before 7:15 a.m. Many other voters echoed the sentiment.

Election volunteers arrived at about 6 a.m., setting up the room and laying out coffee and snacks for voters.

“I’ve been doing this for three or four years,” said voting station worker Shelly Mangusso, a Douglas resident.

Most voters come in early, during lunchtime, or after work, Mangusso said. Voting runs from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

7 a.m.

Good morning, Juneau!

It’s 7 a.m., and that means polls are open for this year’s municipal election. Polls close at 8 p.m. tonight.

There’s four candidates running four Assembly seats and four candidates running for two school board seats.

But by far the most watched result of the night will be how the three ballot measures fare. Propositions 1-3 are each connected to a proposed New Juneau Arts & Culture Center. The public will be able to weigh in on whether the city should increase hotel-motel tax from 7 to 9 percent until 2035 (Proposition 1), issue up to $7 million in general obligation bonds to renovate Centennial Hall (Proposition 2) and provide a $4.5 million grant to the proposed JACC (Proposition 3). You can read more about the trio of ballot measures here: Three ballot questions high-JACC local election and here: Thousands of dollars are being spent on campaigns for and against the New JACC.

Keep checking back here for live updates throughout the day, then for live election result coverage tonight.

Polling info

Don’t know where to vote? Find your polling place here: https://3tb2gc2mxpvu3uwt0l20tbhq-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/2019_Polling_Locations_Regular_Municipal_Election-FINAL.pdf

If that’s not helpful, you can always call the State of Alaska Polling Place Locator number at 1-888-383-8683, enter your Social Security Number or your voter number when prompted, and you will be told where your polling place is located.

See the sample ballot here: https://3tb2gc2mxpvu3uwt0l20tbhq-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/2019-10-01_CBJ_Regular_Election_Sample_Ballot.pdf

If you have any questions generally about the CBJ Regular Municipal Election, you can also contact the Municipal Clerk’s Office at 586-5278.

Candidate info

Here’s who’s running for Assembly and School Board, plus links to candidate profiles.

City and Borough of Juneau Assembly Candidates

Assembly Areawide – One open seat (three-year term)

Carole Triem

Assembly District One – Two open seats (One for a three-year term and one for a one-year term)

Alicia Hughes-Skandijs

Greg Smith

Assembly District Two – One open seat (three-year term)

Wade Bryson

Juneau Board of Education Candidates

Bonnie Jensen

Emil Robert Mackey III

Deedie Sorensen

Martin Stepetin Sr.