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Pat Tynan, left, and Tom Melville, review absentee ballots Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at the Division of Elections office at the Mendenhall Mall in Juneau, Alaska. The review process is taking place in a separate room from where ballots are being tallied for the official results. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire) Pat Tynan, left, and Tom Melville, review absentee ballots Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at the Division of Elections office at the Mendenhall Mall in Juneau, Alaska. The review process is taking place in a separate room from where ballots are being tallied for the official results. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Murkowski, Tshibaka in dead heat; Peltola inches toward 50% in latest election results

The Alaska Division of Elections updated results with newly counted absentee, early and question ballots

Pat Tynan, left, and Tom Melville, review absentee ballots Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at the Division of Elections office at the Mendenhall Mall in Juneau, Alaska. The review process is taking place in a separate room from where ballots are being tallied for the official results. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire) Pat Tynan, left, and Tom Melville, review absentee ballots Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at the Division of Elections office at the Mendenhall Mall in Juneau, Alaska. The review process is taking place in a separate room from where ballots are being tallied for the official results. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka, a Republican, emerges from a voting booth with her son, Joseph, after casting her ballot Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Tshibaka is trying to unseat U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, also a Republican, in the general election. Also in the race is Democrat Pat Chesbro. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Alaska’s Trump-backed candidates take different post-election tracks

Dunleavy’s reelection all but official, while Tshibaka and Palin prepare to fight over “shenanigans”

U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka, a Republican, emerges from a voting booth with her son, Joseph, after casting her ballot Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Tshibaka is trying to unseat U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, also a Republican, in the general election. Also in the race is Democrat Pat Chesbro. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Two Dungeness crabs charge one another while standing on the deck of Charlie Blattner’s boat named “Marco” berthed at the Aurora Harbor on Monday afternoon. According to data from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, this summer’s Dungeness crab fishery dropped around $10 million in value compared to last year.

Dungeness crab summer harvest drops $10M from previous season

Some Southeast fishermen skipping fall season entirely, other’s say season has been “hit or miss”

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Two Dungeness crabs charge one another while standing on the deck of Charlie Blattner’s boat named “Marco” berthed at the Aurora Harbor on Monday afternoon. According to data from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, this summer’s Dungeness crab fishery dropped around $10 million in value compared to last year.
State Sen. Jesse Kiehl of Juneau, right, and lifelong Juneau resident Andrea Ebona Michel monitor election returns Tuesday night at a watch party hosted by U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola’a campaign at McGivney’s Sports Bar Grill downtown. Kiehl, a Democrat, was the lone state senator who was unopposed in his race. Both of Juneau’s Democratic state House representatives also won reelection. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Alaskans embrace red, blue and wait

Voters lean both left and right, with a lot to be decided in two weeks, in ranked choice election

State Sen. Jesse Kiehl of Juneau, right, and lifelong Juneau resident Andrea Ebona Michel monitor election returns Tuesday night at a watch party hosted by U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola’a campaign at McGivney’s Sports Bar Grill downtown. Kiehl, a Democrat, was the lone state senator who was unopposed in his race. Both of Juneau’s Democratic state House representatives also won reelection. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

COVID-19: Only 7% of borough residents have new booster

The state reported no new resident deaths from COVID-19 this week

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican candidate for Alaska’s sole seat in the U.S. House, meets with supporters waving signs Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Palin faced U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, Republican Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Votes still being tallied in statewide races

Thousands of absentee ballots have not yet been counted

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican candidate for Alaska’s sole seat in the U.S. House, meets with supporters waving signs Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Palin faced U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, Republican Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
A copy of the Constitution of the State of Alaska rests on a table at a constitutional convention forum at the Kenai Chamber of Commerve and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

Early results: Constitutional convention question failing

The once-every-decade vote that generated unusual attention this year

A copy of the Constitution of the State of Alaska rests on a table at a constitutional convention forum at the Kenai Chamber of Commerve and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola waves a sign during the morning rush hour in Anchorage, Alaska, on Tuesday Nov. 8, 2022. Peltola, who became the first Alaska Native elected to Congress when she won a special election earlier this year, faces Republicans Sarah Palin and Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Peltola holds early lead in Alaska House race

Peltola embraced the legacy of her Republican predecessor, the late Rep. Don Young

U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola waves a sign during the morning rush hour in Anchorage, Alaska, on Tuesday Nov. 8, 2022. Peltola, who became the first Alaska Native elected to Congress when she won a special election earlier this year, faces Republicans Sarah Palin and Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
A sign directs early voters to the polling station at the Mendenhall Mall on Monday. The mall is one of two early voting locations in Juneau, but more than a dozen polling locations will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

Election Day is finally here

Many winners of Alaska’s first ranked choice general election won’t be known until Thanksgiving

A sign directs early voters to the polling station at the Mendenhall Mall on Monday. The mall is one of two early voting locations in Juneau, but more than a dozen polling locations will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)
A variety of fliers with varying amounts of accuracy from candidates and groups are filling mailboxes leading up to the Nov. 8 general election. TV and other ads also range from pure nonsense to completely accurate, although many fall into the “true from a certain point of view” category. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

Fact-checking political advertisements

What’s accurate, what’s nonsense and what’s “true from a certain point of view”

A variety of fliers with varying amounts of accuracy from candidates and groups are filling mailboxes leading up to the Nov. 8 general election. TV and other ads also range from pure nonsense to completely accurate, although many fall into the “true from a certain point of view” category. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Former Alaska Gov. Bill Sheffield smiles as he holds a The Anchorage Times newspaper in his Capitol office in Juneau, Alaska, on Aug. 5, 1985, after he survived an impeachment effort during July and August 1985. A statement provided by friends says he died Friday, Nov. 4, 2022, at his home in Anchorage. He was 94. Sheffield was governor from 1982 to 1986. (Brian Wallace/The Juneau Empire via AP, File)

Bill Sheffield, former Alaska governor, dies at age 94

Sheffield was governor from 1982 to 1986

Former Alaska Gov. Bill Sheffield smiles as he holds a The Anchorage Times newspaper in his Capitol office in Juneau, Alaska, on Aug. 5, 1985, after he survived an impeachment effort during July and August 1985. A statement provided by friends says he died Friday, Nov. 4, 2022, at his home in Anchorage. He was 94. Sheffield was governor from 1982 to 1986. (Brian Wallace/The Juneau Empire via AP, File)
Steller Secondary School seniors gather in the sunshine outside their school on Oct. 27. From left are Pauline Mallari, Samantha Antonio and Zane Barber, all bound for college. They all enjoy the Alaska outdoors lifestyle, but they all expressed lack of confidence in Alaska as a place for young people to build careers. Demographic data shows that young adults are leaving Alaska, contributing to nine straight years of net outmigration. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Angst over youth outmigration emerges in Alaska campaign rhetoric and debates

University funding, career prospects and lifestyle amenities are factors cited as important to young Alaskans pondering their futures

Steller Secondary School seniors gather in the sunshine outside their school on Oct. 27. From left are Pauline Mallari, Samantha Antonio and Zane Barber, all bound for college. They all enjoy the Alaska outdoors lifestyle, but they all expressed lack of confidence in Alaska as a place for young people to build careers. Demographic data shows that young adults are leaving Alaska, contributing to nine straight years of net outmigration. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Two residents stand in voter booths on the first day of early and absentee in-person voting across the state for the Nov. 8 general election. Recent filings for candidates in statewide races shows spending ramping up as the big day approaches. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Spending spree as campaigns near end

APOC reports one week before election show ad blitz in governor’s race and by convention foes

Two residents stand in voter booths on the first day of early and absentee in-person voting across the state for the Nov. 8 general election. Recent filings for candidates in statewide races shows spending ramping up as the big day approaches. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

COVID-19: Cases rising; hospitalizations steady

The state reported no new resident deaths from COVID-19 this week

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
A person enters the Division of Election’s office at the Mendenhall Mall, where early voting is taking place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 8. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

Mail-in remains popular for early voters

Half of 30,000 ballots during first week of early arrive via mail, requests far above 2018 midterms

A person enters the Division of Election’s office at the Mendenhall Mall, where early voting is taking place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 8. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)
The northern lights appear over Shishmaref, Alaska, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022. Rising sea levels, flooding, increased erosion and loss of protective sea ice and land have led residents of this island community to vote twice to relocate. But more than six years after the last vote, Shishmaref remains in the same place because the relocation is too costly. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Climate migration: Alaska village resists despite threats

Climate change is partially to blame for the rising seas, flooding, erosion and loss of protective ice and land

The northern lights appear over Shishmaref, Alaska, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022. Rising sea levels, flooding, increased erosion and loss of protective sea ice and land have led residents of this island community to vote twice to relocate. But more than six years after the last vote, Shishmaref remains in the same place because the relocation is too costly. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
In this July 13, 2007, photo, workers with the Pebble Mine project test drill in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, near the village of Iliamma. (AP Photo / Al Grillo)

Report on Pebble Mine urges more scrutiny for projects

Backers “tried to trick regulators by pretending to pursue a smaller project with the intention of expanding,” the report said

In this July 13, 2007, photo, workers with the Pebble Mine project test drill in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, near the village of Iliamma. (AP Photo / Al Grillo)
United States Sen. Lisa Murkowski, left, a Republican, looks on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022, prior to a U.S. Senate debate in Anchorage, Alaska. She faces Republican Kelly Tshibaka, center, and Democrat Pat Chesbro, right, in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Murkowski faces Tshibaka and Chesbro in Alaska Senate debate

Topics included the Arctic, the nation’s COVID-19 pandemic response and protecting youth from gun violence

United States Sen. Lisa Murkowski, left, a Republican, looks on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022, prior to a U.S. Senate debate in Anchorage, Alaska. She faces Republican Kelly Tshibaka, center, and Democrat Pat Chesbro, right, in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
Candidates for Alaska’s sole U.S. House seat share a laugh before a debate Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. From left are Republican Sarah Palin, U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat; Republican Nick Begich, and Chris Bye, a Libertarian. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Peltola faces Palin, Begich, Bye in debate

Peltola beat Palin and Republican Nick Begich in a ranked choice August special election

Candidates for Alaska’s sole U.S. House seat share a laugh before a debate Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. From left are Republican Sarah Palin, U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat; Republican Nick Begich, and Chris Bye, a Libertarian. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)
Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News A sign at the South Peninsula Hospital COVID-19 vaccine and testing clinic provides information and hours for testing and vaccines at the Bartlett Street building in Homer.

Hospitalizations continue to fall; COVID cases see uptick

According to the Alaska COVID-19 Data Hub, updated Wednesday, 19 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19. No patients are on ventilators. This is down from last… Continue reading

Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News A sign at the South Peninsula Hospital COVID-19 vaccine and testing clinic provides information and hours for testing and vaccines at the Bartlett Street building in Homer.