FIFTH OPENING – The Sitka seine boats Hukilau and Rose Lee pump herring aboard this afternoon at the end of Deep Inlet during the fifth opening in the Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery. The opening was being held in two locations beginning at 11 a.m. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson) 

New RFP Sought For Managing PAC
27 Mar 2024 14:48

By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel Staff Writer
    The future of management and operations at the Perform [ ... ]

Seiners Get Second Day with 2 Areas to Fish
27 Mar 2024 14:46

By Sentinel Staff
    The Sitka Sound commercial herring sac roe fishery continued today with open [ ... ]

Braves Take Second in Last Minute Upset
27 Mar 2024 12:41

By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel Sports Editor
    After storming into the state 3A boys basketball brac [ ... ]

Tuesday City League Volleyball
27 Mar 2024 12:39

By Sentinel Staff
    The Queen Bees’ spotless season record ended Tuesday night with a 2-1 loss [ ... ]

Kodiak Alutiiq Museum Getting New Attention
27 Mar 2024 12:37

By SHIRLEY SNEVE
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House Hearing on Inmate Deaths Halted
27 Mar 2024 12:35

By CLAIRE STREMPLE
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Nominee to Bering Sea Council: Not a Trawler
27 Mar 2024 12:34

By NATHANIEL HERZ
Northern Journal
    Tribal and environmental advocates calling for a crackdown o [ ... ]

March 27, 2024, Police Blotter
27 Mar 2024 12:26

Police Blotter
Sitka police received the following calls by 8 a.m. today:
March 26
At 2:10 p.m. a man e [ ... ]

March 27, 2024, Community Happenings
27 Mar 2024 12:25

Big Rigs Sought
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Reassessments Raise Tax Bills for Sitkans
26 Mar 2024 15:22

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
    The city’s reassessment of taxable real estate, alo [ ... ]

Two Areas Opened in Herring Fishery Today
26 Mar 2024 15:21

By Sentinel Staff
The third opening in this year’s Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery was held Mon [ ... ]

Lady Wolves Rally to Take Fourth at State
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By GARLAND KENNEDY
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Edgecumbe Girls Close Out Season Up North
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By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel ports Editor
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City League Monday
26 Mar 2024 14:55

By Sentinel Staff
    Playing in a competitive division City League volleyball game Monday evening [ ... ]

House Votes to Broaden Rules For Review Panel Memb...
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26 Mar 2024 14:51

By NATHANIEL HERZ
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Faster Internet Speeds In Rural Schools OK'd
26 Mar 2024 13:53

By CLAIRE STREMPLE
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Native Words Gathered In Environment Studies
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By YERETH ROSEN
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    In the language of the Gwich’in people of northeastern Alaska,  [ ... ]

March 26, 2024, Police Blotter
26 Mar 2024 13:49

Police Blotter
Sitka police received the following calls by 8 a.m. today:
March 25
At 7:48 a.m. a calle [ ... ]

March 26, 2024, Community Happenings
26 Mar 2024 13:48

Vietnam-Era Vets
Invited to Lunch,
Commemoration
American Legion Post 13 will host a luncheon 1-3 p.m.  [ ... ]

Sac Roe Herring Fishery Opens in Hayward
25 Mar 2024 15:30

By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel Staff Writer
    The 2024 Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery got under [ ... ]

Projects on the Table For Cruise Tax Funds
25 Mar 2024 15:28

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
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Braves Take Second at State after Close Loss
25 Mar 2024 15:23

By Sentinel Staff
    Competing in the 3A state championship title basketball game Saturday, the M [ ... ]

City League Games Continue
25 Mar 2024 15:11

By Sentinel Staff
    Playing through the afternoon Sunday, City League volleyball teams faced off [ ... ]

Other Articles

Daily Sitka Sentinel

JKT-Wein Race Left In Limbo After Vote

By KLAS STOLPE
Sentinel Staff Writer
    The outcome of the race between Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and Richard Wein to represent House District 35 in the Legislature was up in the air today because ballot counting machines malfunctioned in Sitka election night.
    Sitka has 56 percent of the registered voters in House District 35, which also includes Petersburg and 11 smaller communities.                 Results available today from most of the House District 35 communities outside of Sitka indicated Kreiss-Tomkins with a slight lead over Wein. The exception was the North Prince of Wales precinct, where Wein out-polled Kreiss-Tomkins 51 to 26.
    Further, the District 35 absentee and early voting ballots that have already been counted show Wein with a 5-vote lead, 303-298, over Kreiss Tomkins.

Sitkans watch a TV monitor for updated election results late Tuesday evening at the Mean Queen restaurant during an election night party. Because of technical problems at the state division of elections, everyone had to go home without knowing how Sitka voted. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

    It may be as late as Thursday morning before the Sitka ballots will be counted and the final unofficial results of voting in the district will be known, election officials said this morning.
    Sitka is the hometown of both House incumbent Kreiss-Tomkins, a Democrat, and Wein, his Republican challenger.
    Early this afternoon Kreiss-Tomkins released this statement from Anchorage, where he was meeting with other legislators on organizing the House for the upcoming legislative session.
    “We’re feeling positive about results that are in thus far, especially compared to past years, but ultimately want to hear the fat lady sing,” Kreiss-Tomkins said. “In the interim, our coastal Bipartisan Coalition is staying together, but as a 19-member minority against the 21-member Railbelt majority.”
    Wein had not responded to the Sentinel request for comment by press time.
    Kreiss-Tomkins was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 2012 after beating Republican incumbent Bill Thomas by just 34 votes. He has since won two more elections by wide margins, beating Republican challengers by about 20 percentage points in 2014 and 2016.
    During his campaign, Kreiss-Tomkins supported balancing the state budget, improving ferry service in coastal Alaska, and constitutionalizing the Permanent Fund dividend.
    Wein said in his campaign his top legislative priorities would be to support a repeal of SB91 – a 2015 bill that reformed the criminal justice system – and to address the high cost of health care.
    The state-run election system calls election results to be counted locally in each community, and transmitted electronically to Juneau on the night of the election. But something went wrong with the ballot machines in both of Sitka’s voting precincts Tuesday night.
     “Sitka precincts 1 and 2 are being Gold Streaked today, and once we get the memory cards our plan is to upload the results either tonight or tomorrow morning,” Communications Manager Samantha Miller at the State Division of Elections, told the Sentinel at 1 p.m. today.
    Of the District 35 votes counted so far, Kreiss-Tomkins had 56.21 percent of the votes to Wein’s 42.91 percent, 1,276 to 974.
    Those results were from Angoon, Craig, Hoonah, Kasaan, North Prince of Wales, Pelican-Elfin Cove, Petersburg-Kupreanof, Port Alexander, and Tenakee Springs. In addition to Sitka, results were missing from Thorne Bay, Kake and Klawock.
    For comparison in terms of registered voters, the communities outside of Sitka have 7,836, while Sitka alone has 7,410. Only a fraction of the number of those registered will actually cast ballots in any election, but the proportion indicates the effect the Sitka ballots as yet uncounted will have in the election.
    It appeared unlikely that the uncounted Sitka votes would have any effect on the outcome of the statewide races as indicated in today’s unofficial results.
    Many absentee ballots remain to be counted.
    “If they were postmarked on or before election day then we would proceed forward on counting those and if they were not then we wouldn’t count those,” Miller said. “It’s kind of hard to say how many absentee outstanding by mail ballots we have. Those will continue to trickle in.”
    Miller said there will be a seven-day count, a 10-day count and a final 15-day count.
    Unofficial vote counts show Republican state lawmaker Mike Dunleavy will become Alaska’s next governor after defeating Democrat Mark Begich, getting 53.39 percent of the state’s votes compared to Begich’s 43.57 percent, and Republican Don Young retained his seat as the U.S. Representative, defeating Democrat Alyse Galvin 53.94 percent to 45.64.
    The 2,294 District 35 votes already counted show Mike Dunleavy earning 1,089 votes to Mark Begich’s 1,046.
    The incomplete District 35 results showed Don Young winning 1,151 votes to Alyse Galvin’s 1,123 in the U.S. House race.
    Ballot Measure 1, the Salmon Initiative, was failing in District 35, with 63.62 percent No votes, compared to 36.38 percent Yes.
    Superior Court Judge William Carey and District Court Judges Kevin Miller and Kirsten Swanson all received majority vote totals for retaining their positions.
    Election results will not be finalized until November 21.

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20 YEARS AGO

March 2004

Matthew C. Hunter of Sitka recently returned from Cuba as part of a St. Olaf College International and Off-Campus Studies program. Hunter, a junior physics major at St. Olaf College, is the son of Robert and Kim Hunter of Sitka.


50 YEARS AGO

March 1974

Eighth graders have returned from a visit to Juneau to see the Legislature. They had worked for it since Christmas vacation ... Clarice Johnson’s idea of a “White Elephant” sales was chosen as the best money-maker; Joe Roth won the political cartoon assignment; highest government test scorers were Ken Armstrong, Joanna Hearn, Linda Montgomery, Lisa Henry, Calvin Taylor and David Licari .....

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