Begich pulling ahead of Stevens in Alaska US Senate race, with an assist from Bob Bird

Bob Bird emailed [email protected]:

Go to www.elect.alaska.net and check on the tally on the Alaska Senate race. Somewhere around 90,000 absentee, questioned and early ballots are being counted.

At this time, the page shows

Begich, Mark DEM 132196 [47.41%]
Bird, Bob AI 11315 [4.06%]
Gianoutsos, Ted NA 1140 [0.41%]
Haase, Fredrick D. LIB 2086 [0.75%]
Stevens, Ted REP 131382 [47.12%]
Write-in Votes 718 [0.26%]

Stevens was convicted on seven counts of making false statements on October 27. Stevens faces a maximum penalty of five years per charge. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Feb. 25.

Here is what happens if Begich’s current lead does not hold, according to wikipedia:

Within a few days of his conviction, Stevens faced bipartisan calls for his resignation. Both parties’ presidential candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, were quick to call for Stevens to stand down. Obama said that Stevens needed to resign to help “put an end to the corruption and influence-peddling in Washington.” McCain said that Stevens “has broken his trust with the people” and needed to step down—a call echoed by his running mate, Sarah Palin. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, as well as fellow Republican Senators Norm Coleman, John Sununu and Gordon Smith have also called for Stevens to resign. McConnell said there would be “zero tolerance” for a convicted felon serving in the Senate—strongly hinting that he would support Stevens’ expulsion from the Senate unless Stevens resigned first. Late on November 1, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid confirmed that he would schedule a vote on Stevens’ expulsion, saying that “a convicted felon is not going to be able to serve in the United States Senate.” No sitting Senator has been expelled since the Civil War.

If Stevens is expelled, a special election would be held to fill the seat through the remainder of the term, until 2014. Some people speculate that defeated Vice President candidate, Sarah Palin may use this special election as a way to ‘get into’ Washington.

The AIP is listed as an affiliate of the Constitution Party on the latter party’s website. Bird has also been a national Constitution Party delegate. The Constitution Party may also have played an important role in the Oregon US Senate race, where incumbent Republican Gordon Smith was defeated in a tight race, and the Constitution Party member Dave Brownlow was one of the strongest candidates in the country affiliated with that party, with well over the margin of difference.

In the other two remaining race to be decided, Minnesota appears to be headed for a recount. The Independence Party’s Dean Barkley had over 15% of the vote, and several other candidates had less than 1%. Only a couple of hundred votes separate the Democratic and Republican candidates. In Georgia, no candidate got over 50%, and due to state law the race is heading for a runoff. The Libertarian Party’s Allen Buckley, eliminated in the first round, has not at this time endorsed either remaining candidate.

If all three of these remaining contests (Alaska, Minnesota and Georgia) are decided in favor of the Democrats, they will have a filibuster-proof 60 votes in the Senate – but only if Connecticut’s Joe Lieberman, who endorsed McCain, continues to caucus with them.