Initial results from Tuesday’s primary election show Republican Jeremy Bynum with a sizable lead, but all three candidates will advance to the fall election for Alaska House District 1.
With in-person election day votes counted, Bynum has secured nearly 50% of the vote, followed by independent Grant EchoHawk with about 27% and independent Agnes Moran with just over 23%. The top four candidates move on, and since there’s only three, they are each set to appear on November’s ballot.
District 1 covers the southeast corner of Southeast Alaska, including Ketchikan, Metlakatla, Wrangell, and Coffman Cove.
Roxanne Abajian was working the polls in Ketchikan during the lunch hour at the recreation center, and said the day had been going smoothly.
“Things have been going well,” she said. “The flow has been about as expected for a primary election.”
Abajian has worked the last few elections and said Tuesday’s turnout seemed similar to previous primaries. Total turnout for the district was about 17% of registered voters.
At least one voter, Diane Willard, was reminded of the election by the “Vote Here” sign out front. She said the main issue on her mind is the Alaska Marine Highway System and getting ferry service returned to Prince Rupert, on mainland Canada.
“It’s a really big problem,” Willard said. “And a lot of people like to drive through Canada, going to Seattle. So to hop on the ferry and go to Prince Rupert is cheaper than hopping on the ferry and going to Bellingham.”
She said the Prince Rupert connection also made it much easier to visit family in Haida Gwaii.
Another voter, Robert Renninger, said his priority is getting the state’s finances in order.
“What they do now is they just spend too much money, more than they have,” Renninger said. “They can’t be spending like you know, people that borrow money all the time. They need to spend within budget.”
Bynum leads in all but three House District 1 precincts: Metlakatla, Saxman, and Ketchikan’s first precinct, which includes downtown. EchoHawk has the edge in those three.
Official election results should be certified by September 1, and then voters will make their final selection for the state House during the general election on November 5.
