Posted on 06/21/2022 4:47:09 PM PDT by cotton1706
If it’s true that Gross has allowed Sweeney to ascend to fourth place, Monday’s announcement likely harkens to one of the great political maneuvers in the past decade. Sweeney, a registered Republican, is the proverbial darling of resource development organizations throughout Alaska. Her empassioned advocacy on behalf of the North Slope and the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation put her distinctly at odds with the crunchy environmentalism that defined Gross’ campaigns. One of the few things either camp had in common were relationships to opponents of the Pebble Mine project in western Alaska.
Those opponents share something else in common: an affection and devotion to the current senior senator from Alaska, Lisa Murkowski. Murkowski, an incumbent since 2002 when she was appointed by her father, the outgoing U.S. senator and incoming Gov. Frank Murkowski, has made no secret of her opposition to the large gold and copper deposit. Some of Murkowski’s most vigorous supporters have pointed to Murkowski’s staunch resistance to the project as proof of her independent bona fides. Those same supporters are some of Sweeney’s greatest surrogates.
What was made abundantly clear this week is that, though the news is about the congressional race, the story is how these events are colluding to assist in the race for the United States Senate.
The parallels to the circumstances that kept Murkowski in office and conspiring to install Sweeney are eerie. In 2010, after she lost the Republican Primary to Joe Miller, Murkowski launched a write-in campaign. With support from centrist Republicans, Democrats, and a huge turnout of the Alaska Native vote terrified of a Miller senatorial career, Murkowski won the first write-in for Senate since Strom Thurmond in 1948.
(Excerpt) Read more at mustreadalaska.com ...
You know that the RINO’s are behind this.
There should be no higher priority than defeating this bitch. That it’s not being done tells you need to know about the GOP and its donors.
I think you are completely right about RINOs.
Even if it is only the Murkowski political interests and the legacy oil interests, it is hard to see how this analysis is pointing to a plan that can actually work.
There is too much talk in this article about this group doing this and that group doing that. Voters aren’t usually all that tightly grouped.
I’d say Murkowski’s incumbency and Palin’s good looks and high profile history are the big factors.
But Murkowski is old and tired and Palin is ferocious on the campaign trail. If it turns into the contest this article describes, I’d guess that Murkowski’s opponent should be able to catch a wave.
That it’s not being done tells you need to know about the GOP and its donors.
*************
True that. The GOP is not to be trusted. Its agenda and interests do not coincide with that of conservatives in any way, shape or form.
Sarah is running for the sole US House seat from Alaska. Murkowski is seeking re-election to the Senate.
I understand that Alaska has Ranked Choice Voting, a Leftist construct.
The fix is in there.
Ranked choice and a non-partisan Top Four system. The top four in the jungle primary, regardless of party, get to November, then they use ranked choice voting to pick a winner from the four.
The State of Alaska has already announced that the fifth place candidate will not be placed on the ballot. So it’s two Repubs and one Rat on the ballot. The Repubs will split the vote and the Rat will win.
Ranked Choice!
Gross is a Quitter!
They are doing all they can to stop Kelly Tshibaka for Senate.
The Tara Sweeney native voters will also support Murkowski, not Kelly. Yes, Murkowski will be reelected.
Gross was the only candidate who could have beaten Palin ... Begich cannot. Sweeney won’t be on the ballot in the August Special, but will make it on in November ... which is what all the Murks want. Palin will win the House, Murkowski re-elected to Senate.
Indeed.
The article supposes that Murkowski and Sweeney will be able to form some sort of “ticket” that will successfully block both Palin and Murkowski’s opponent Tshibaka.
I doubt it. Voters don’t organize tightly and predictably. I don’t think Murkowski and her establishment can touch Palin with any great effect, and I don’t think that Tshibaka has anyone to beat but Murkowski.
I don’t agree, I can’t imagine how Gross would have won.
I think Begich can win as I said in the other post.
Gross vs Palin as the final 2. ...
Gross combines the Murkowski RINO voters with the DEM vote.
Enough to beat a conservative, as Murk will show in NOV
Sullivan was not disliked by the RINO vote, so Gross failed in ‘20 to put the coalition together.
Palin won’t get that vote in ‘22
I can’t forsee a majority of Alaskans supporting a dem caucuser this year. Murkowski, for all her unacceptable faults, is not a democrat. Gross would have been a vote for a dem Speaker.
I would think dems would favor Begich over Palin cause they
A)Hate Palin and hate Trump who endorsed Palin
B)Might see the last name and despite the letter (R) think it means he’s more moderate
But admittedly I’m not an expert in how democrats do their equivalent of thinking. I’ve seen a least one say “Palin would be a wildcard, harder for McCarthy to control”. But this was a white collar white Biden dem who probably lives in Maryland, I have no idea what goes trough the mind of some Eskimo.
And guess which two states have both RCV and RCV-enabledvotingmachines. ...
Maine and Alaska.
What a coinkydink.
If we want Deep State gone, we need to repeal RCV wherever it’s in use and go back to dumb voting machines.
Here’s my two cents:
Had Gross stayed in, there was a good chance that he would have finished in second place (behind Palin and ahead of Begich) after the fourth-place-finishing little-known Democrat is eliminated and her voters’ second-place choice being counted; were that to happen, Begich’s voters’ second choice (or, in the rare instances in which their second choice was the little-known Dem, their third choice) would receive the votes, and that almost certainly would result in a Palin victory. I don’t think that sufficient Begich voters would place Gross second (as opposed to Palin second) to allow Gross to catch up to Palin.
However, with Gross dropping out, now it is almost certain that Palin will finish first and Begich second, and that the Democrats’ voters’ second-place votes will decide the election. I think that this makes Begich the prohibitive favorite. While Gross dropping out may hurt Democrat turnout (which I hope is enough to sink Murkowski, although I’m not to sanguine about that race, either), the fact that it cements Begich in the top two is a huge blow to Palin’s chances.
What do you think of Begich? He’s seems fine.
I haven’t forgiven Palin for Bill Walker but it amusing to imagine how triggered the left would be by having her in Congress.
I agree that Begich seems fine. I don’t know whether I’d place Palin or Begich first.
POLL from AK Survey Research that weeds out undecideds I guess, French polls do that.
THE RAT 40%
Begich 31%
Palin 29%
2nd Round
Begich 57%
Rat 43%
2nd Round if rat/palin
RAT 51%
Palin 49%
I think this poll overestimates the rat’s support. Someone say they have underestimated Palin in the primary.
For Senate they have
final round:
Murkowski 52%,
Tshibaka 48%
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