Voters choose change

PALMER — A raucous election season saw numerous races end Tuesday on primary night, with at least one Valley incumbent apparently unseated.

In one of the most watched races in the Valley, Alaska Sen. Linda Menard seems to have lost her Senate seat to challenger Mike Dunleavy in the Republican primary.

With all precincts reporting, but absentee votes outstanding and the vote not yet certified, Dunleavy led Menard 58.2 percent to 41.8 percent.

Menard is the matriarch of a family of local politicians and dentists who has spent decades serving on boards such as the Mat-Su Health Foundation and the Mat-Su Borough School Board.

Dunleavy is an educator and former school administrator, currently president of the school board. There is no democratic opponent for him to face this fall.

Also in the Senate, Republican Charlie Huggins was unopposed in his re-election bid, but will face Democrat Susan Parson-Herman in the general election in November.

In another well-watched Senate race with a piece of the Valley in it — the Republican primary fight between Ralph Seekins and Click Bishop of Fairbanks and David Eastman of Palmer — Bishop seemingly walked away with the race. He has 48.7 percent to Seekins’ 30.2 percent and Eastman’s 21.1 percent. Those percentages were as of Thursday morning with 95 percent of precincts reporting.

If his lead holds, Bishop will face Democrat Anne Sudkamp of Fairbanks in November.

On the House side, District 6, representing Chickaloon but also Valdez and North Pole, saw incumbent Eric Feige of Chickaloon squaring off against Sutton Community Council President George Rauscher. As of Thursday with 90 percent of precincts reporting, Feige had the lead with 52.7 percent to Rauscher’s 47.3 percent.

Feige, if that lead holds, will face off against Democrat Jamey Duhamel of Sutton in November.

District 7, representing the outskirts of Wasilla and points north, went overwhelmingly to Wes Keller. With all precincts in, Keller held a commanding 68.6 percent of the votes to former Houston mayor Roger Purcell’s 31.4 percent.

Keller also will has no challenger in November.

If Keller’s lead was commanding, though, former legislative aide and lobbyist Shelley Hughes’ lead in District 8 was even more so. With all precincts in, the Palmer race saw Hughes pulling in 72.3 percent of the vote to small businessman and pilot Daniel Hamm’s 27.7 percent.

Hughes was the incumbent in the race, but just barely. She was appointed just months ago to fill the unexpired term of the late Carl Gatto.

The new district carved out of the Valley during redistricting saw former Mat-Su Borough Assemblyman Mark Ewing squared off against school board member Lynn Gattis. And with 100 percent of precincts reporting, Gattis apparently beat Ewing handily, pulling in 60.7 percent to Ewing’s 39.3 percent.

Gattis, if nothing changes, will face Democrat Blake Merrifield in November.

In the Big Lake/Knik district, Mark Neuman got to sit the primary out, but will face Democrat Pam Rahn in November.

And last but not least — incumbent Bill Stoltze, who represents mostly Chugiak but also part of the Butte, faced challenger Thomas Connelly. Stoltze appears poised to skate through the general election unopposed. With 100 percent of precincts in he holds 82 percent of the vote to Connolley’s 18 percent.

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