"Susan Carney"

In a letter to the council, Dunleavy wrote “the slate of candidates put forward could be expanded to reflect the balance and diversity in philosophy and Alaskan experience requisite to adequately make a fair choice for the people of Alaska.”

Ballot Measure 2 grew closer to passing on Friday, with 1,141 more yes votes than no votes after the day’s count. 

But, these are preliminary results, and, as Alaska is the last state in the country to begin to count absentee ballots, the outcome of close races won’t be known for at least a week after Election Day.

In some other states, judges run television campaign ads to convince voters to help them keep their seats. That’s not the case in Alaska.

Social conservatives tried and failed to oust a former Alaska Supreme Court justice, Dana Fabe, in 2010, and an Anchorage Superior Court judge, Sen Tan, in 2012.

“We recognize that too often African-Americans, Alaska Natives, and other people of color are not treated with the same dignity and respect as white members of our communities,” the justices wrote.

Assistant Attorney General Margaret Paton-Walsh said if Dunleavy could be recalled for failing to appoint a judge in 45 days, then any governor could be recalled for violating any law. Justice Craig Stowers pushed back.

An intrastate case raised grand legal questions about poor, rural Alaskans’ access to the justice system. Yet it was also an exercise in budgetary semantics with almost no practical effect — except for running up publicly funded legal bills.

Carney will replace the five-member Alaska Supreme Court’s only female member, Justice Dana Fabe.

Juneau Bar Association asks Gov. Walker to consider geographic diversity before making his selection.