With few viable candidates facing elimination from the November general election in next Tuesday’s primary and special election, opportunities for Southeast Alaska residents to meet or see them in debates/forums are scarce during the days leading up to voting.
Incumbent U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski is scheduled to attend the opening of her Juneau campaign headquarters Thursday evening, U.S. House candidate Mary Peltola is slated to be in Juneau for a fundraiser Friday evening, and independent U.S. Senate challenger Shoshana Gungurstein is scheduled to host events in Juneau between Sunday and Tuesday including a film screening Monday evening.
Outside Juneau, gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker is scheduled to do a meet-and-greet in Sitka on Thursday, U.S. House candidate Nick Begich III is scheduled to do a meet-and-greet and radio interview in Ketchikan on Friday, and an online U.S. Senate candidate forum featuring mostly lesser-known candidates is scheduled Friday.
Many of the candidates are, of course, planning campaign activities elsewhere in the state and advertising heavily during the closing days.
The most significant vote next Tuesday is the ranked choice special election to fill the remainder of the late U.S. Rep. Don Young’s seat. The three contenders — Republicans Begich and Sarah Palin, and Democrat Mary Peltola — all are expected to be among the four candidates selected during the separate general election primary for the November ballot, with a victory next week likely to provide an edge in the subsequent race.
Alaska’s new voting system, where the top four primary finishers appear on the general election ballot, means all three of the top-polling contenders in the races for governor and U.S. Senate will advance, with the most drama being who will be the fourth candidate in each of those races. The primary election is not a ranked choice vote.
The primary will have little impact on the local state legislative races, since among Juneau’s three-member delegation only one candidate is facing a challenge from a single opponent.
The following are publicly released appearances by major candidates — with attending details about Southeast Alaska events — and forums/debates available via broadcast and online media leading up to Tuesday’s vote (candidates with no listed events and who didn’t provide any in response to inquiries are not included):
U.S. Senate
– Murkowski is scheduled to attend the grand opening of her Juneau campaign office from 6-8 p.m. Thursday at the Kootznoowoo Plaza at 8585 Old Dairy Road, Suite 205. She is also planning a 12-hour “Day of Action” gathering in Anchorage on Saturday and a meet and greet in Fairbanks from noon-1:30 p.m. Monday.
– Gungurstein is scheduled to be in Fairbanks on Wednesday, in Anchorage from Friday through early Sunday, and will return to Juneau on Sunday evening for “engaging with supporters, voters and sign waving,” according to an email from her campaign.
“On (Monday) at 7 p.m. Shoshana will be hosting a get-out-the-vote event and showcase a climate impact short film called “Above Water” at the Goldtown Nickelodeon theater in Juneau,” the email noted, adding she will be in Juneau on Tuesday for get-out-the-vote activities. “Above Water” is a documentary that depicts Shishmaref, an Iñupiaq community, as it copes with climate change. It is not a movie connected to the candidate’s previous work in film that was reported this week by the political blog the Alaska Landmine.
– Tshibaka’s confirmed schedule consists largely of events near her Southcentral home. She will be at a rally in Eagle River on Wednesday evening, a town hall in Wasilla on Thursday evening, the Girdwood Blueberry Festival on Saturday, and on Sunday will be at the grand opening of her Soldotna Campaign Office and the Ninilchik Fair.
– Democratic challenger Patricia Chesbro is scheduled to participate in online U.S. Senate candidate forum hosted by Native Peoples Action is at 6 p.m. Friday. An event organizer said Tuesday other confirmed candidates so far are Edgar Blatchford, Dustin Darden, Lee Huhnkie, Pat Nolin and Karl Speights, and “Lisa Murkowski said she is on a flight during this time and cannot attend.”
U.S. House
– Begich is scheduled to visit major communities throughout the state this week, including a meet-and-greet at the Uncharted Distillery in Ketchikan from 4-6:30 p.m. Friday, according to Campaign Manager Truman Reed. Begich is also scheduled to do a radio interview there with KRBD.
“Additionally, Nick is making a quick stop in Juneau late Friday night/Saturday morning where he has a few meetings set up,” Reed wrote in an email. In a follow-up message he noted “the meetings in Juneau this trip are not public; rather, planning and coordinating with some of our campaign volunteers.”
– Peltola is scheduled to attend a fundraiser open to the public in Juneau from 5:30-7 p.m. Friday at the home of Jill Ramiel and Ken Alper at 526 Seward Street. A notice for the event states it has more than 100 co-hosts.
Governor
– Walker is scheduled to do a meet and greet fundraiser at Harbor Mountain Brewing Co. in Sitka from 6-8 p.m. Thursday.
– Democrat Les Gara is scheduled to be in Dillingham on Wednesday for a community meet-and-greet, in Anchorage for a “ Pro-Choice/Pro-Equal Rights Pre-Primary Fundraiser” on Thursday and a “RurAL CAP Early Education Meet & Greet” on Friday, and in Fairbanks for meetings on Saturday.
– Republican challenger Christopher Kurka is scheduled to host “Alaska Freedom Tours” in Soldotna on Wednesday and Thursday, Kenai on Friday and Saturday, and Homer on Sunday.
– Republican challenger Charlie Pierce is scheduled to do a fundraiser in Anchorage on Thursday.
