Joe Miller-Endorsed Amy Demboski Pulls it Off, Will Face Liberal Berkowitz in Run-Off Election for Anchorage Mayor

Amy Demboski-Campaign photoWith 99% of the ballots counted in the Anchorage mayoral race, Amy Demboski and Ethan Berkowitz are the top two vote getters and will face a run-off election in May as neither candidate passed the 45% threshold to win outright.

Ms. Demboski, a current Anchorage Assembly member, and Mr. Berkowitz, a former Democratic state legislator, are near-polar opposites with respect to a number of political issues. Anchorage voters will have a clear choice between a strong advocate for limited government and fiscal restraint versus a traditional, big government liberal.

On election night, Ms. Demboski stated that, “I truly believe the people of Anchorage were galvanized behind a truly fresh message. It’s going to be either big government and more taxes or less government and lower taxes.”

Mr. Berkowitz (37%) was endorsed by liberal Mark Begich in the race. One of Ms. Demboski’s (24%) first endorsements was from conservative firebrand Joe Miller, former U.S. Senate candidate.

The other top vote getters, Andrew Halcro (22%) and Dan Coffey (15%), were both registered Republicans but were not considered traditional conservatives. Halcro, who won a miniscule portion of the statewide vote in his bid for governor several years ago, has aligned himself with leftist issues and politicians for years, while ex-lobbyist and former assembly member Coffey had only been a registered Republican since this past January.

Undoubtedly, this will be a challenging race for Ms. Demboski. Given the low turnout anticipated in the run-off election, Ms. Demboski’s get-out-the-vote effort will be critical, and she must retain and expand her conservative base.