Bush Alaska cuts ties, goes for Begich

Alex DeMarban

November 13, 2008 at 10:06AM AKST

Bush Alaska has benefited handsomely from Sen. Ted Stevens’ money-producing magic, but it broke with past trends on Nov. 4. Registered voters in the six districts extending from Kodiak to the North Slope sided with Democrat Mark Begich, some of them quite heavily.  

As for the presidential race, some districts in the region long known for its Democratic leanings preferred Barack Obama, though Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin appeared with presidential hopeful John McCain on the Republican ticket.

Finally, some of the Bush Alaska districts also bucked the rest of the state in the U.S. House race, favoring Democrat Ethan Berkowitz over Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska.
Turnout was high in many villages, exceeding 50 percent. This was the first presidential election in which state polling officials were required to offer assistance in Yup’ik, the state’s most commonly spoken Native language. 

In the Yup’ik village of Newtok near Bethel, where turnout reached 63 percent, some who voted for Obama said it was time for a Democratic president. Some felt that as a minority, he would understand their concerns.

McCain supporters who spoke with a reporter said they had heard that Obama opposed gun rights or would raise taxes.  

Those who favored Begich or Berkowitz said it was time to change the Republican hold on Alaska’s congressional seats. They wanted younger representatives.    

Here’s how districts in Bush Alaska voted:
House District 6 – including the Yukon and Interior
    Begich 2,292 – Stevens, 2,218
    Young, 2,491 – Berkowitz, 1969
    McCain, 2,998 – Obama, 1,683
House District 36 – Kodiak and portions of the Alaska Peninsula
    Begich, 2,186 – Stevens, 1,714
    Young, 2,099 – Berkowitz, 1,835
    McCain, 2,655 – Obama, 1,390
House District 37 – Bristol Bay and Aleutian Islands
    Begich, 1719 – Stevens 1,581
    Young, 1,828 – Berkowitz, 1,404
    McCain, 1,988 – Obama, 1,357
House District 38 – Lower Kuskokwim River
    Begich, 2,597 – Stevens, 1,217 votes.
    Berkowitz, 1,914 – Young, 1,772
    Obama, 2,059 –McCain, 1,727    
House District 39 – Lower Yukon River and southern Seward Peninsula
    Begich, 2,590 – Stevens, 1,693
    Young, 2,166 – Berkowitz, 2,033  
    Obama, 2,296 – McCain, 1,996
House District 40 – Northwest Alaska and North Slope
    Begich, 2,390 – Stevens 1,533
    Berkowitz, 1,971 – Young, 1,852
    McCain, 2,189 – Obama 1,707

Several thousand absentee and questioned ballots remained to be counted by the state Division of Elections this week. Supporters of Begich were holding out hopes that the results would allow their candidate to overtake Stevens — who had strong showings in the Mat-Su Valley and parts of the Interior — in the final official tally.
    
Alex DeMarban can be reached at 907-348-2444 or 800-770-9830, ext. 444.