GOP ticket in Valley

PALMER — Gov. Sean Parnell and his newly selected running mate, Mead Treadwell, appeared in the Alaska State Fair parade as their first public event as a unified ticket.

Right after, the two stood in the rain outside Raven Hall and answered questions from reporters.

“I think the Parnell-Treadwell ticket represents Alaska values,” Parnell said when asked how he gauged his chances coming into the general election. He and Treadwell will face Democrats Ethan Berkowitz and Diane Benson.

As for Treadwell, Parnell said he feels the lieutenant governor candidate is a great addition to his ticket.

In Alaska, Parnell said, “you don’t get to pick your dance partner,” but he thinks the voters made a good choice for him.

He said he was spending the day at the fair with his family. He and his daughter planned to ride the 1,001 Nachts ride, something they’ve done in previous years.

Asked about the potential for one of his vanquished challengers to mount a third-party campaign, Parnell noted that Ralph Samuels had already said he wouldn’t. As for Bill Walker, he said he’s had conversations with him but said the question of whether or not Walker would go that route is one the candidate would have to answer for himself.

Walker carried every Valley district in Tuesday’s Republican primary but it wasn’t enough — Parnell took the statewide vote.

Parnell said he felt those Valley voters would mesh well with his.

As for Treadwell, he said he’s reaching out to Walker’s supporters and trying to let them know that if the Parnell-Treadwell ticket is elected, Walker’s main campaign issue won’t be ignored.

Walker’s main focus in the race was building a gas pipeline from the North Slope to Valdez to ship gas to Asia. Treadwell said he’s worked to facilitate the sale of Alaska products in Asia before and is more than ready to do so again.

“If there’s a market that can help get a gas pipeline going in Asia, let’s put them together,” with the gas producers, he said.

Speaking of natural gas, Treadwell acknowledged the primary election was certainly a pipeline-heavy one.

He said he didn’t think his position on the matter differed too terribly much from Parnell’s.

Both Treadwell and Parnell have been saying all along that the state has to work with everyone looking to build a gas line, not just pick one project and push for it.

Treadwell said the Valley should expect to see a lot of him and Parnell in the weeks leading up to the general election Nov. 2. The Republican Women’s Club booth at the fair was the first place in the state to have Parnell/Treadwell signs available. And he’s had a number of Valley events already.

“My car pretty much knows the way to Pandemonium Books,” he said.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.