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Senator-elect Jesse Bjorkman, center, participates in a candidate forum Oct. 17, 2022, at the Soldotna Public Library. Bjorkman was elected in November to represent Alaska Senate District D on the Kenai Peninsula. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Bjorkman joins Senate majority caucus

He is one of 17 members of the bipartisan group

During a hearing at the Juneau Courthouse, 34-year-old Anthony Michael Migliaccio pleaded not guilty after he was arrested on a first-degree murder charge in the killing of a 55-year-old Juneau woman. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

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Man arrested in Juneau killing pleads not guilty

News follows a two-month investigation.

The Alaska State Capitol awaits a legislators forming new majority coalitions and the return of Gov. Mike Dunleavy after the winners of the general election were announced Wednesday. The Senate will have a 17-member bipartisan ruling coalition, while the House arrangement remains uncertain due to at least one likely recount and questions about partisan alignments. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire)

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Bipartisan majority formed for new state Senate

Eight Republicans join nine Democrats after many years of Republican rule

Sarah Palin, left, a Republican, is shown before a debate for Alaska’s sole U.S. House seat on Oct. 26, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Palin re-emerged in Alaska politics over a decade after resigning as governor with hopes of winning the state’s U.S. House seat. She had unbeatable name recognition, the backing of former President Donald Trump and an unrivaled ability to attract national media attention. But she struggled to catch fire with voters and ran what critics saw as a lackluster campaign against a breakout Democrat who pitched herself as a regular Alaskan and a Republican backed by state GOP leaders. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)

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Next act for Palin unclear after Alaska House losses

Palin lost two elections for the House seat Republican Don Young held for 49 years before his death…

Clockwise from upper left: Mary Peltola, Lisa Murkowski, Mike Dunleavy and Jesse Bjorkman

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After ranked-choice tabulation, Murkowski, Peltola win reelection

The tabulation process was streamed live by KTOO

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

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COVID-19: Hospitalizations rise for 3 consecutive weeks

For the period of Nov. 13 to Nov. 19, 434 new resident COVID-19 cases were reported

Cook Inlet is seen from Clam Gulch State Recreation Area on Feb. 7, 2020, in Clam Gulch, Alaska. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Peninsula Clarion file)

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Free parking at Alaska State Parks the day after Thanksgiving

The move aims to encourage Alaskans to get outside during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend

Nurse Tracy Silta draws a dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at the walk-in clinic at the intersection of the Kenai Spur and Sterling Highways in Soldotna, Alaska on Wednesday, June 9, 2021. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion file)

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Health officials urge vaccination and mitigation ahead of virus trio

Health officials hope to mitigate the strain on hospitals this winter due to COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial…

Nurse Sherra Pritchard gives Madyson Knudsen a bandage at the Kenai Public Health Center after the 10-year-old received her first COVID-19 vaccine on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion file)

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Fewer than 50% of Alaska kids completing routine vaccines

This was compared to 2013, when more than 60% were completing routine vaccinations

This composite image shows mopheads recently flushed down toilets in Juneau that are creating problems at the Auke Bay wastewater treatment facility. (Courtesy Photos / City and Borough of Juneau)

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Flushing of mopheads down toilets causes sewage system clogs

City officials to ask for the culprits to clean up their act

Pat Tynan, left, and Tom Melville, review absentee ballots Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at the Division of Elections office at the Mendenhall Mall in Juneau, Alaska. The review process is taking place in a separate room from where ballots are being tallied for the official results. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire) Pat Tynan, left, and Tom Melville, review absentee ballots Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022, at the Division of Elections office at the Mendenhall Mall in Juneau, Alaska. The review process is taking place in a separate room from where ballots are being tallied for the official results. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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Murkowski, Tshibaka in dead heat; Peltola inches toward 50% in latest election results

The Alaska Division of Elections updated results with newly counted absentee, early and question ballots

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

News

23 new resident COVID-19 deaths reported this week

For the period of Nov. 6 to Nov. 12, 383 new resident COVID-19 cases were reported

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire Two Dungeness crabs charge one another while standing on the deck of Charlie Blattner’s boat named “Marco” berthed at the Aurora Harbor on Monday afternoon. According to data from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, this summer’s Dungeness crab fishery dropped around $10 million in value compared to last year.

News

Dungeness crab summer harvest drops $10M from previous season

Some Southeast fishermen skipping fall season entirely, other’s say season has been “hit or miss”

U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka, a Republican, emerges from a voting booth with her son, Joseph, after casting her ballot Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Tshibaka is trying to unseat U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, also a Republican, in the general election. Also in the race is Democrat Pat Chesbro. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

News

Alaska’s Trump-backed candidates take different post-election tracks

Dunleavy’s reelection all but official, while Tshibaka and Palin prepare to fight over “shenanigans”

A copy of the Constitution of the State of Alaska rests on a table at a constitutional convention forum at the Kenai Chamber of Commerve and Visitor Center on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

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Early results: Constitutional convention question failing

The once-every-decade vote that generated unusual attention this year

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican candidate for Alaska’s sole seat in the U.S. House, meets with supporters waving signs Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska. Palin faced U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, Republican Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

News

Votes still being tallied in statewide races

Thousands of absentee ballots have not yet been counted

State Sen. Jesse Kiehl of Juneau, right, and lifelong Juneau resident Andrea Ebona Michel monitor election returns Tuesday night at a watch party hosted by U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola’a campaign at McGivney’s Sports Bar Grill downtown. Kiehl, a Democrat, was the lone state senator who was unopposed in his race. Both of Juneau’s Democratic state House representatives also won reelection. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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Alaskans embrace red, blue and wait

Voters lean both left and right, with a lot to be decided in two weeks, in ranked choice…

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

News

COVID-19: Only 7% of borough residents have new booster

The state reported no new resident deaths from COVID-19 this week

U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola waves a sign during the morning rush hour in Anchorage, Alaska, on Tuesday Nov. 8, 2022. Peltola, who became the first Alaska Native elected to Congress when she won a special election earlier this year, faces Republicans Sarah Palin and Nick Begich and Libertarian Chris Bye in the general election. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

News

Peltola holds early lead in Alaska House race

Peltola embraced the legacy of her Republican predecessor, the late Rep. Don Young

A sign directs early voters to the polling station at the Mendenhall Mall on Monday. The mall is one of two early voting locations in Juneau, but more than a dozen polling locations will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

News

Election Day is finally here

Many winners of Alaska’s first ranked choice general election won’t be known until Thanksgiving