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UPDATE: The “Write-in” tally has gained a 5 point lead over Republican candidate Joe Miller for the first time during the Nov. 2 election’s ballot count. “Write-in” ballots, which may hold votes mostly for incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski, comprise 75,532 votes versus Miller’s 65,892 votes. All of those votes will have to be verified and lawyers hired by the Miller Campaign will be on hand when the counting starts. Ballots must have both the name of the candidate and the bubble next to the name filled in for the vote to count.

UPDATE: With 68.34 percent of the vote tabulated  at 11 p.m., numbers for the U.S. Senate race are still within 1 percentage point of where they were early in the evening. “Write-in,” which may consist mostly of votes for write-in candidate and incumbent Lisa Murkowski, leads at 39.33 percent of the vote, with Republican Joe Miller at 35.32 percent. Democrat Scott McAdams is in third place at 24.36 percent.

Since the totals began around 9 p.m., “Write-in” has lost just .33 percent of the lead, Miller has gained just .87 percent, and McAdams has dropped .46 percent. No candidate has succeeded in pulling ahead by even one percentage point from where they started, although exactly who all the “Write in” votes belong to must be verified ballot by ballot.

The race for governor and lieutenant  is pretty mush sealed. Sean Parnell and Mead Treadwell lead by 59 percent over Democrats Ethan Berkowitz and Diane Benson’s tally of 38 percent.

UPDATE: With 51.1 percent tabulated at 10:15 p.m. the “Write-In” slot of the U.S. Senate Race has gained just a bit to lead by 39.45 percent of the vote. This is the first time the write-in slot has gained any traction since the tallies were updated at 9:32 p.m., and analysts say those were urban precincts. Juneau votes, which include many Democrats, are already tallied. Still not reporting are preceincts from many villages, and the Barrow area.

The U.S. Senate race that features Lisa Murkowski’s write-in candidacy has thrown a curve ball into Election night. With 40 percent of the vote tabulated shortly before 10 p.m., the “Write-In” slot lead with 39.45 of the vote, almost 5 percent ahead of Republican nominee Joe Miller and well ahead of Democratic challenger Scott Mc Adams’ 24.88 percent.

Miller and McAdams are showing very small gains against “Write-In” as returns come in. McAdams gained .08 percent over the previous reporting period when 34.25 percent of votes were cast. Miller gained .17 percent during that time while Murkowski’s numbers slipped .21 percent.  Should “Write-in”  take the day, it may be weeks until the winner is known.

In the race for governor, the Parnell/Treadwell ticket leads handily with 58 percent to the Berkowitz/Benson ticket’s 37 percent.

By John R. Moses

ALASKA PIONEER PRESS

TALKEETNA — A popular 53-year-old Talkeetna resident was fatally shot  in front of witnesses Friday night at the bar of the Latitude 62 restaurant and lodge by a man who fled the establishment via the rear door after firing the fatal round.  Dirk Fast of East Talkeetna died at the scene, despite lifesaving efforts by bystanders and paramedics.

Next of kin have been notified.

Samuel E. Clark, 40, also of Talkeetna, was arrested at Mile 7.5 of the Talkeetna Spur Road shortly after the shooting. He was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the shooting and remanded to the Mat-Su Pre-Trial Facility in Palmer on $500,000 bail and would need third-party supervision if released on bail.

The shooting came as several patrons were at the bar, and the lodge was hosting a music concert with as many as 40 attendees in its main dining room. Witnesses said the assailant made an accusation of a personal nature before shooting the victim.

The Latitude 62 is a year-round business and a community hub where violence of even a minor nature is extremely uncommon. Troopers did not release a possible motive and witnesses who knew the victim said the attack made no sense.

Most concert-goers, who did not see the crime, stayed put and ushers watched the closed dining room door as bystanders rushed to the victim’s aid. The lodge was secured against the suspect’s return. Assistant Fire Chief Eric Denkewalter entered the lodge before Troopers arrived to make sure the scene was safe enough for paramedics to deploy.

A Trooper later allowed concert-goers who did not see the incident to leave after taking down their information.

Spokesperson Beth Ipsen said Troopers arrested Clark at 9:31 p.m. Friday after identifying his vehicle near Mile 7 of the Spur Road.

Investigators with the Alaska Bureau of Investigation, who are running the inquest, took over the scene Friday night, Ipsen said.

By John R. Moses

ALASKA PIONEER PRESS

TALKEETNA — A Talkeetna resident was shot  in front of witnesses Friday night at the bar of the Latitude 62 restaurant and lodge by a man who fled the establishment via the rear door after firing the single round.  A suspect was arrested at Mile 7.5 of the Talkeetna Spur Road minutes after the shooting, according to first-responders and radio traffic from emergency personnel on the scene.

The shooting came as several patrons were at the bar and the lodge was hosting a music concert with as many as 40 attendees in its main dining room. Witnesses said the assailant made an accusation of a personal nature before shooting the victim.

Most concert-goers, who did not see the crime, stayed put and ushers watched the door as bystanders rushed to the victim’s aid. Lodge personnel secured the premises against the suspect’s return. Assistant Fire Chief Eric Denkewalter entered the lodge to make sure the scene was safe enough for paramedics to deploy.

A Trooper later allowed concert-goers who did not see the incident to leave after taking down their information.

The Alaska Pioneer Press will not release the name or status of the victim or the name of the suspect until confirmation comes from the Alaska State Troopers.

Spokesperson Beth Ipsen said details should be released tomorrow (Saturday).

“There are no details to release at this time because investigators with the Alaska Bureau of Investigation, who are taking over the investigation, have not yet arrived on scene,” Ipsen said.

By Paul Thomas

ALASKA PIONEER PRESS CORRESPONDENT

TALKEETNA – The Democrats of District 15 hit the road in October for a trip to the Whole Wheat Radio studio that drew about 20 people and featured call-in discussions with U.S. Senate hopeful Scott McAdams and Congressional candidate Harry Crawford.

The group’s previous meeting was in Willow, but the executive committee decided to set the October meeting even further north in an effort to generate more enthusiasm and support for Democratic principles and candidates among voters in Talkeetna and Trapper Creek. District Chairperson Glenn Meidinger said including more people from the district’s northern regions was one of the group’s goals.

Meidinger introduced a number of party leaders from Districts 14 and 16 as well as from the state party. The next agenda item was the introduction of everyone in the room, and Mr. Meidinger asked that each introduction include a brief explanation as to “Why I am a Democrat.”

This question led to an interesting exercise, because some of the attendees were not Democrats — or even disciples of the two-party political system. Most, however, were partisan Democrats who see their party, in spite of flaws they were all ready to admit, as one which is more accepting of a wide range of people than the other major party.

Before all the personal introductions (some of which contained lengthy speeches) were completed, Democratic senatorial candidate Scott McAdams called in to speak to the gathering.

McAdams urged his supporters to keep working on the campaign and characterized his candidacy as “…a chance to vote for what you believe in, not what you’re scared of.”  He also described the Republican candidacies as a continuation of “a family feud between the Murkowskis and the Palins.”

Then it was time for questions from the floor. This question was later posed to Crawford as well.

“Recently National Public Radio reported that the cheapest gasoline in the country was in New Jersey and the most expensive was in San Francisco at $3.05 a gallon, completely ignoring the fact that we were paying $3.37 a gallon at the time of the report.  Why is it that the nation’s largest producer of oil has the highest retail price for gasoline?”

McAdams said that there are some stations in Nome where the price was as much as $5 per gallon.  He said people need to understand that “Alaska is no longer a colony” where corporate interests from outside should have this type of influence on the people in Alaska. He offered no other specifics on what he would do as U. S. Senator regarding the retail gasoline price in Alaska.

When the same question was posed to Congressional Candidate Crawford, who called in later, it was after Crawford told the group that during his 10 years in the Legislature he represented Alaskans, not corporate interests.

This prompted a follow-up question which pointed out that, even after Crawford’s decade in the legislature, Alaskans were still paying higher gasoline prices than anywhere in the nation.  Crawford said that he tried to introduce legislation which would open up more competition in refining gasoline, but each time he did the Republican-controlled committees managed to quash the legislation before it even came up for a vote.

Between the phone conversations with the candidates, other issues were discussed including:

• Central Committee Meeting Report by Vice-chair Casey Steinau where she expressed uniform support for Proposition B (school construction).
• With no Democratic candidate running in this legislative district, the committee has been focusing its efforts on the state-wide races.
• The problem encountered in recruiting Democratic candidates for 2012.  One participant complained that the Central Committee wants to recruit candidates who are willing to embrace party dogma, and it is reluctant to support independent thinkers that may not completely agree with the Party line.
• Recruiting and training poll watchers who are able to observe and report illegal activity at the polls.  On-line and teleconferencing training is available.

The meeting ended with discussions of political philosophies and distributions of campaign paraphernalia while singer/songwriter Deb Wessler entertained the group with her songs.

ALASKA PIONEER PRESS ONLINE UPDATE

     TALKEETNA – Whole Wheat Radio, Talkeetna’s own online world-wide radio station, is offline and done with its mission, according to founder Jim Kloss. The best and most respectful way to pass the details along today is to let him tell you his reasons himself at this link. Look for a full report in the Nov. 3 edition of the Alaska Pioneer Press.

The publisher is now breaking out the black crepe and bunting and going into musical mourning.

Alaska Pioneer Press Online Update

FROM THE EDITOR: Here’s a press release that was too late for the October edition, with the rally flyer pasted at the end of the post. Although the flyer indicates the rally stops at 11 a.m., the rally will continue until noon. This one’s for the Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert fans:

RALLY TO RESTORE SANITY

SATURDAY, OCT. 30, 2010, 8 A.M. to NOON

WASILLA MIDDLE SCHOOL, Wasilla, Alaska

 Feeling left out of the political dialogue these days? Disheartened by what you hear from people with microphones and syndicated ‘news’ shows? Then we have something for you, the ‘Rally to Restore Sanity’.

On Oct. 30, from 8 a.m. to noon in the gymnasium at Wasilla Middle School, Wasilla will join 49 (and counting) other ‘satellite’ rallies around the nation to raise a voice for moderation, that voice that seems to get drowned out by an increasingly fringe media and occasionally by our very elected officials. We are inviting people who think shouting is annoying, counterproductive, and terrible for your throat, who feel that the loudest voices should not be the only ones that get heard. The purpose of this rally will be to give the 80 percent of people who usually have things to do a chance to rally for sanity, not rage. So come help us encourage angry citizens on both sides of the aisle to take it down a notch, but bring your indoor voice.

We will join up with the D.C. rally at the National Mall for the majority of the morning but we will intertwine that with local acts including, the Alaskan reggae band, “Bare Roots.”  Further info will be released on our Facebook page, ‘Rally to Restore Sanity: Wasilla, Alaska’.

So I ask you, Got Moderation? Do you think anger is not a very good management strategy and that roundabouts do not necessarily correspond to Socialism? Then come to our rally on October 30th where we will be resorting to 1st Amendment tactics and you just might get a word in edgewise.

 There is no charge, however, donations are welcome.  Proceeds benefit Food Pantry of Wasilla, a 501(c) (3) organization, EIN 92-0150918.

Wasilla_Rally_Flyer[1]

October’s edition hit the stands, and you can get it online as well at www.akpioneerpress.com.

The Talkeetna Post Office has a clean and less-informative look now.

Now that news racks have been banned from the Talkeetna Post Office the front is looking much less cluttered.

Pity they can’t do something about all the clutter we find in our mailboxes from junk mailers (SEE BELOW). If this photo represents YOUR advertising dollars at work, remember that people read newspapers and toss glossy ad circulars into the circular file or recycling bin!

Here's what usually happens to direct mail advertising.

The next regular meeting of the Democrat District #15 organization will be Sunday, Oct. 17. It takes place at the Whole Wheat Radio and Computer Center, 15528 E. Birch Creek Blvd., just a short drive from Talkeetna Spur Road. The business meeting will start at 1 p.m. with a social hour to follow at 3 p.m. featuring entertainment by musician Deb Wessler. Voter registration will be available. Contributions for the local food pantry are encouraged. Meeting organizers say they hope to inspire “some civil political discussion.” The public is invited to attend. For more information contact Glenn Meidinger, 376-4748 or dingerak@mtaonilne.net. Go to www.wholewheatradio.org for directions.