Summary
The 2004 United States Senate election in Alaska took place on November 2, 2004, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives, various state and local elections, and the presidential election of that year. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Anchorage, sought election to her first full term after being appointed by her father Frank Murkowski to serve out the rest of the latter's unexpired term when he resigned in December 2002 to become Governor of Alaska. Her main challenger was Democratic former governor Tony Knowles, her father's predecessor as governor. Murkowski won by a slight margin. As of 2022, Senator Murkowski’s vote total of 149,773 votes remains the most raw votes she has ever received during any of her runs for the US Senate.
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 Results by borough and census area Murkowski: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Knowles: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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Background edit
Although Alaska is heavily Republican, popular opinion had swung against the Murkowski family because of a tax increase passed by Governor Frank Murkowski, Lisa Murkowski's father. In addition, many voters disapproved of apparent nepotism in the appointment of Lisa Murkowski to the Senate. Knowles, who as mentioned above preceded Frank Murkowski as governor, had enlisted extensive out-of-state support for his bid to take over Lisa Murkowski's Senate seat. However, veteran Republican Senator Ted Stevens taped advertisements warning Alaskans that electing a Democrat could result in fewer federal dollars for Alaska.
Democratic primary edit
Candidates edit
- Tony Knowles, businessman, former governor and former mayor of Anchorage
- Theresa Obermeyer, former Anchorage school board member and 1996 Democratic U.S. Senate nominee
- Don Wright, former president of the Alaska Federation of Natives and perennial candidate
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Tony Knowles | 40,881 | 95.0% | |
| Democratic | Don Wright | 1,080 | 2.5% | |
| Democratic | Theresa Obermeyer | 1,045 | 2.4% | |
| Total votes | 43,006 | 100.0% | ||
Republican primary edit
Candidates edit
- Jim Dore, aviation mechanic
- Mike W. Miller, businessman, former state senator, former state representative, nominee for lieutenant governor in 1994 and younger brother of Terry Miller
- Lisa Murkowski, incumbent U.S. Senator since 2002, formerly an Anchorage lawyer and member of the Alaska House
- Wev Shea, former U.S. Attorney for Alaska
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lisa Murkowski (incumbent) | 45,710 | 58.1% | |
| Republican | Mike Miller | 29,313 | 37.3% | |
| Republican | Wev Shea | 2,857 | 3.6% | |
| Republican | Jim Dore | 748 | 0.9% | |
| Total votes | 78,628 | 100.0% | ||
General election edit
Candidates edit
Major edit
- Tony Knowles, former governor
- Lisa Murkowski (R), incumbent U.S. Senator
Minor edit
- Ted Gianoutsos (I), lobbyist and activist on ANWR and veterans issues
- Scott Kohlhaas (L), party activist and perennial candidate
- Marc Millican (I), aviator, U.S. Air Force veteran
- Jerry Sanders (AI), businessman, former state representative
- Jim Sykes (G), party activist and perennial candidate
Campaign edit
Lisa Murkowski had very low approval ratings as senator due to her father, Frank Murkowski, who at the time was the governor of Alaska with extremely low approval ratings himself. Former governor Tony Knowles ran against Murkowski. He ran as a Democrat who supported drilling in ANWR, in contrast to most Democrats. Alaska's senior senator, Ted Stevens, worked to rescue her campaign and help her maintain her seat.[2]
Debates edit
- Complete video of debate, October 26, 2004
- Complete video of debate, October 28, 2004
Predictions edit
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[3] | Lean D (flip) | November 1, 2004 |
Polling edit
| Poll source[4] | Dates administered | Murkowski (R) | Knowles (D) |
|---|---|---|---|
| KTUU | October 4, 2004 | 45% | 48% |
| KTUU | October 18, 2004 | 45% | 47% |
| McLaughlin | October 28, 2004 | 48% | 43% |
Results edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lisa Murkowski (incumbent) | 149,773 | 48.58% | −25.91% | |
| Democratic | Tony Knowles | 140,424 | 45.55% | +25.82% | |
| Independent | Marc J. Millican | 8,885 | 2.88% | ||
| Independence | Jerry Sanders | 3,785 | 1.23% | ||
| Green | Jim Sykes | 3,053 | 0.99% | 2.22% | |
| Libertarian | Scott A. Kohlhaas | 1,240 | 0.40% | −1.87% | |
| Independent | Ted Gianoutsas | 732 | 0.24% | ||
| Write-ins | 423 | 0.14% | |||
| Majority | 9,349 | 3.03% | −51.74% | ||
| Turnout | 308,315 | ||||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
Boroughs and census areas that flipped from Republican to Democratic edit
- Aleutians West Census Area (largest city: Unalaska)
- Bethel Census Area (largest city: Bethel)
- Kusilvak Census Area (largest city: Hooper Bay)
- Nome Census Area (largest city: Nome)
- Dilingham Census Area (largest city: Dilingham)
- Lake & Peninsula Borough (largest city: Newhalen)
- North Slope Borough (largest city: Utqiaġvik)
- Northwest Arctic Borough (largest city: Kotzebue)
- Prince of Wales–Hyder Census Area (largest city: Craig)
- Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area (largest city: Fort Yukon)
- Juneau
- Sitka
- Hoonah–Angoon Census Area (largest town: Hoonah)
- Yakutat
- Petersburg
- Skagway
- Ketchikan Gateway Borough (largest city: Ketchikan)
- Bristol Bay Borough (largest city: Naknek)
See also edit
Notes edit
- ^ In December 2002, Murkowski was appointed by Governor Frank Murkowski (her father) to fill the vacancy caused by Frank Murkowski himself resigned after being sworn in as Governor of Alaska.
References edit
- ^ a b "2004 Primary Election - August 24, 2004 Official Results". State of Alaska. September 14, 2004. Archived from the original on May 20, 2009.
- ^ Hulse, Carl (October 31, 2004). "THE 2004 CAMPAIGN: CONTROL OF CONGRESS; Races for House and Senate Have Been Nasty, Expensive and Focused on Local Issues". New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2010.
- ^ "The Final Predictions". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
- ^ "Polls". RealClear Politics. Retrieved June 20, 2010.
- ^ Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 2, 2004" (PDF).