Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich has won his contest with U.S. Senator Ted Stevens. With Begich leading by fewer than 4,000 votes, Stevens conceded Wednesday afternoon. There were 31,5573 votes cast and 100 percent (about 2,000 absentee ballots are expected Wednesday) have been counted, according to unofficial results.
Prior to this result, Democrats had gained six seats this election cycle, increasing their Senate majority to 57. Two other races -- Georgia and Minnesota -- remain undecided. Georgia will hold a run-off election on 2 December. Minnesota begins the recount process on Wednesday.
In Minnesota, incumbent Republican freshman Senator Norm Coleman leads Democratic challenger Al Franken by 215 votes, a 0.008 percent lead (2.9 million votes cast). Independent Dean Barkley received 15.16 percent (437,404 votes). The remaining 25,186 votes were divided among five candidates.
This manual recount is not unlike that which took place in Florida in 2000: the goal is to determine voter intent.
The recount will seek to determine the intent of voters whose ballots were not counted when they were run through optical scanners, which record only filled-in circles. For example, a star or a ring around a candidate’s name clearly signals a preference but does not register on a machine.
There is no mandatory recount in Alaska law, although if the difference is less than 0.5% of the total votes cast the state will pay for a recount. Begich leads 47.76% to 46.58%, greater than the state-funded recount margin and greater than the number of the missing absentee ballots.
Stevens is the longest-serving Republican in the Senate; he has held his Senate seat 40 years. In October, he was convicted of seven felony counts relating to accepting $250,000 in gifts and services from Veco, an Alaska oil services and construction company at the center of the now multi-year corruption probe.
Had Stevens won re-election, the Senate would likely have expelled him. His apparent loss renders moot the constitutionality of a citizen initiative mandating that the Senate seat would have remained vacant until a special election could be held. The last time that there was an open Senate seat in Alaska, the Governor appointed his daughter, leading to the citizen backlash.
- Mark, Begich, DEM - 150728 - 47.76%
- Bob Bird, AI - 13113 - 4.16%
- Ted Gianoutsos, NA - 1375 - 0.44%
- Fredrick D. Haase, LIB - 2482 - 0.79%
- Ted Stevens, REP - 147004 - 46.58%
- Write-in Votes - 871 - 0.28%
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