The Juneau Empire’s voter guide for the Oct. 1 municipal election, featuring profiles of all candidates and overviews of the other items on the ballot, is in the Sept 11 print edition and available free online at juneauempire.com.
All stories in the guide are independently reported by Juneau Empire staff.
Ballots for the election are scheduled to be mailed to residents Thursday by the City and Borough of Juneau. On the ballot are two candidates for mayor, two candidates for the District 1 Assembly seat, five candidates for the District 2 Assembly seat and six candidates for three Juneau Board of Education seats. There are also recall votes for two current school board members.
The ballot also contains three propositions: a $12.7 million public safety bond measure, a $10 million wastewater treatment facility bond measure, and a Ship-Free Saturday measure that would prohibit cruise ships with room for 250 or more passengers on Saturdays and the Fourth of July.
Candidate profiles are intended to supplement the official ones provided online by CBJ, which provide biographical information and a 250-word position statement. All 15 municipal and school board candidates were interviewed by the Empire on a range of topics that were generally similar, although candidates were not asked the exact same questions in a specific order. The questions and responses have been edited for length and clarity.
The stories about the recalls and ballot propositions are based on previous Empire coverage, plus additional reporting and supplemental materials including the official CBJ voter information guide.
Page placement of all stories was done without knowledge of what, if any, ads would appear on those pages.
The online version of this voter guide will remain prominently available on the Juneau Empire’s homepage through the end of Election Day. All stories — and links to other stories and material — will be in front of the Empire’s paywall.
CANDIDATE PROFILES
Mayor
Assembly District 1
Assembly District 2
Juneau Board of Education
OTHER BALLOT MEASURES
Recall petitions A and B: Juneau Board of Education President Deedie Sorensen and Vice President Emil Mackey
Propositions 1 and 3: Municipal bonds for public safety and wastewater treatment upgrades
Proposition 2: Ship-Free Saturday
DATES, TIMES, PLACES, RULES
Election Day: Tuesday, Oct. 1. Vote centers open 7 a.m.-8 p.m.
Final day to register: Sunday, Sept. 1.
By-mail voting: Ballots will be mailed Sept. 12 to voters on file. Ballots can be returned to one of the two Juneau Vote Centers, to one of three additional secure drop boxes or via USPS. (Must be mailed no later than Election Day.)
Residents out of town between Sept. 12–Oct. 1: Options are
1) Temporary Address Applications can be submitted until Sept. 24. Return ballots must be postmarked by Oct. 1 and received by Oct. 14.
2) Eballot/Fax Application can be sent starting Sept. 18 (approximately). You must print out the ballot to mark it. The last day to submit this application is 5 p.m. Sept. 30 at 5 p.m. Ballots returned by email/fax must arrive before 8 p.m. Oct. 1. Ballots mailed back must be postmarked by Oct. 1 and received by Oct. 14.
Vote Centers: City Hall Assembly Chambers, Mendenhall Valley Public Library. Varying hours.
Secure Ballot Drop Boxes: City Hall, Mendenhall library, Auke Bay-Statter Harbor boat launch parking lot, Douglas Library/Fire Hall Community Building, Alaska Electric Light and Power Co. building in Lemon Creek.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
