Gov. Sean Parnell was easily defeating Democratic challenger Ethan Berkowitz Tuesday to win his first full term as Alaska's governor.
The GOP incumbent has been in the governor's office since July 2009, stepping up from his old job as lieutenant governor when former Gov. Sarah Palin abruptly resigned.
Elected lieutenant governor Tuesday was Anchorage entrepreneur Mead Treadwell, a well-known longtime Alaska business and civic leader and close associate of the late Gov. Wally Hickel.
With more than 70 percent of the vote counted Tuesday night, Parnell led Berkowitz 60 percent to 39 percent. That tally was actually more than what poll after poll had predicted throughout the general election; those surveys had put put Parnell up by roughly 10 percent.
Parnell said Alaskans elected him because voters "were saying yes to jobs, families and the economy."
He said the Senate race was "hugely divisive" but this is Alaskans moment to stand together to solve issues. Parnell said he wanted to be a "bridge builder" and bring Alaskans together "to heal."
Berkowitz, who ran with lieutenant governor candidate Diane Benson on the Democratic ticket, tried to convince voters that Parnell's administration had been one of failed leadership, and that the governor was doing little to boost Alaska's economy including nothing to encourage new and more oil development on Alaska's North Slope.
Berkowitz used the campaign to offer a number of initiatives he viewed as getting Alaskans more invested in their state's policies. Those included letting people contribute their Permanent Fund Dividends to help build a gas pipeline; lifetime hunting, fishing and trapping licenses; corporate tax breaks for small businesses and making the attorney general an office independent from the governor.
In a phone interview, Berkowitz said that one day, "Alaskans are going to hold their leaders accountable." He said that he defers to the will of the people, but that people need to "raise expectations and demand leadership."
It's the second time in four years Berkowitz has come in second to Parnell; in 2006 they were both candidates for lieutenant governor, with Berkowitz running alongside former two-term Gov. Tony Knowles. Parnell, a former state lawmaker from Anchorage who lost a bid for U.S. House in 2008 to the venerable Don Young, won the lieutenant governor's post when Palin was elected governor.
Her last year in office was marked by controversy and the whirlwind of a national political spotlight when she was tapped as the Republican Party's vice presidential nominee alongside presidential hopeful Arizona Sen. John McCain. But the limelight was a bit too harsh for the small-town mayor-turned-governor and Palin was soon mired in questions about her competence and her personal life, all in front of a national audience. She called reporters to a July 4 press conference and surprised the state with her decision to resign with 18 months left to go in her term.
Parnell ascended quietly to the governor's office on the heels of Palin's explosive departure. He was immediately cast in the role of the calming force, a part he played well for the rest of 2009 and through the 2010 legislative session.
He hit the campaign trail with as little fanfare as he'd shown in office, running a steady yet low-key race that annoyed his two main primary opponents -- Ralph Samuels and Bill Walker -- who accused him of ducking them. Parnell won the primary with a smidge over 50 percent of the vote to Walker's 33 percent and Samuels' 14 percent.
Berkowitz, who defeated state Sen. Hollis French in the Democratic primary, emerged from the primary with a healthy bank balance that he used in part to pay for a barrage of TV spots attacking Parnell on number of fronts. Chief among them was Parnell's support of the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act, which pledges up to $500 million in state money to the two companies backing a North Slope gas line, TransCanada and Exxon Mobil. Parnell prefers what he calls a "Y" line -- a gas line to Canada with a spur to Valdez -- while Berkowitz supports an all-Alaska line from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez. Berkowitz lined up support from Walker, a staunch all-Alaska gas line advocate, which likely contributed to his climb in the polls near the end of the campaign.
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Parnell stuck to his campaign mantra of "jobs and families" throughout the race, promising to work harder on getting North Slope producers to invest more heavily in hard-to-get oil reserves and bolster waning oil production and create more jobs. Parnell and Berkowitz had differed on the best way to encourage more oil production and Berkowitz had early on suggested abandoning the state's current oil tax system -- called Alaska's Clear and Equitable Share or ACES -- in favor of a royalty or contract system that couldn't be changed by the Legislature. Late in the campaign, Parnell moved from strongly supporting ACES to agreeing that the controversial "progressivity" element of the law should be capped in an effort to appease oil companies.
The governor also vowed to continue his efforts to reduce domestic violence and sexual assault in Alaska and to bolster education initiatives by expanding the merit scholarship program he'd pushed through earlier in the year that provides college financial aid to all kids who achieve a certain academic standard.
Together, Parnell and Treadwell spent more than $1.2 million to win their seats. Treadwell contributed nearly $300,000 of his own money to his lieutenant governor's campaign before the primary. Additionally, the Republican Governors Association spent more than $700,000 in the last week of the campaign including 215,000 mailers, TV and radio ads opposing Berkowitz.
Berkowitz and Benson spent more than $900,000 on their campaigns.
Contact Patti Epler at patti(at)alaskadispatch.com.