Sitka mayor loses to challenger

Sitka and the Ketchikan Gateway Borough will have new mayors soon.

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Incumbent Sitka Mayor Valorie Nelson trailed challenger Fred Reeder by 141 votes after Tuesday's city election. However, 313 absentee and questioned ballots are still to be counted.

Nelson told KCAW-FM her stance on some local issues may have alienated people.

Sitka voters also approved an advisory question to give pay raises to new Assembly members but rejected a measure to allow city employees to enter collective bargaining.

Marty Bettis and Bill Paden were elected to Sitka's Assembly. Incumbents Keith Perkins and Lawrence Blood did not seek re-election.

Ketchikan Gateway Borough voters elected a new mayor to replace Jack Shay, whose term ends this year.

Mike Salazar received 2,358 votes for the post, beating two other challengers. Incumbent Assembly members George Lybrand and Mike Sallee lost in an eight-way race for three open seats. Lybrand finished fifth and Sallee was sixth.

Shay and David Landis received the most votes for two of the seats.

The third race had George Tipton leading Colleen Scanlon 1,497-1,485.

Ketchikan has separate city and borough governments.

In the Ketchikan city elections, Marty West White, Jim Van Horn and Steve Williams and Robert Norton won election to the City Council. Incumbent Mike Harpold was ousted in a six-way race for three open seats.

Voters in Ketchikan also backed an advisory ballot measure on building a bridge to Gravina Island and rejected one to do away with term limits for local officials.

Ketchikan voters rejected an advisory ballot measure to ban using public land to build a bridge to Gravina Island. The vote was 2,589-1,336.

Voters there also overruled a Borough Assembly ordinance approved in March to lift the current term limits on Assembly members and mayors. The vote was 3,123-752 for that binding ballot measure.

Borough mayor and Assembly members are barred from serving more than two consecutive terms under the current ordinance.