Dems Take 814-Vote Lead In Alaska's Senate Race

Breaking: Begich Takes 3 814 Vote Lead Over Stevens In Alaska's U.S. Senate Race!

UPDATE: Lead Widens for the Democrat over the Felon, With Remaining Votes Still to Come From Largely Democratic Districts...

By Brad Friedman, The BRAD BLOG

As the counting continued of the 90,000 previously uncounted votes in Alaska today (a full third of the total votes cast had remained untabulated), Democratic Anchorage mayor Mark Begich has now taken a three vote lead over the convicted Republican felon Sen. Ted Stevens who had previously led by some 3,200 votes.

From Public Record:

Alaska Senator Ted Stevens is dangerously close to losing his senate seat as Democratic challenger Mark Begich now leads the closely watched race by 3 votes with thousands more absentee ballots still to be counted.

The latest vote tally from the Alaska Division of Elections shows Begich, the mayor of Anchorage, leading Stevens with 125,019 votes to 125,016. If Begich prevails he would be the first Democrat in Alaska elected to the Senate since the 1970s.

As predicted, the previously-uncounted early and absentee ballots were likely to favor the Democrat. Looks like they have. RAW STORY has MSNBC's video coverage here...

Three U.S. Senate seats remain up for grabs still, in Alaska, Minnesota and Georgia. Should all three go to the Democrats --- and at least two of them, AK and MN are looking increasingly likely --- they would have the 60 vote, filibuster-proof majority in the next Congress (as long as you include Joe Lieberman) that we first discussed last week.

UPDATE 11/13/08, 10:10am PT: We're playing catchup on the numbers this morning, but as of late last night, Nate Silver reports at FiveThirtyEight.com, Begitch had opened up an 814 vote lead over Stevens with the remaining, uncounted ballots largely from Dem districts. Details...

The Alaska Board of Elections has finally updated (pdf). With 17,728 votes counted since the previous update, Democrat Mark Begich has the lead over Republican Ted Stevens, 132,196 to 131,382.

More votes to be counted tomorrow and possibly Friday.

As we've pointed out and has been pointed out elsewhere, the remaining votes come from Begich-friendly districts. Mark Begich is now an overwhelming favorite to win the Alaska Senate seat.

Previously related at The BRAD BLOG...

• 11/6/08: "SOMETHING SMELLS VERY FISHY IN ALASKA"

• 11/6/08: "FILIBUSTER-PROOF DEMOCRATIC MAJORITY BEGINS TO LINE UP IN U.S. SENATE"

• 11/9/08: "Alaska Stinks & Minnesota's on Edge, So Here's What Parties and Citizens Can Do to Try and Ensure Election Results with Integrity There and Elsewhere"

• 11/10/08: "Alaska Update: Thousands of Ballots 'Found', One-Third Remain Uncounted in the State's Still-Fishy '08 Election"

• 11/11/08: "Alaska's New Numbers: Still Very Stinky"

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ENDS

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