Sumner unseats longtime Mat-Su School Board member as voters approve longer terms
Election officials released final Mat-Su Borough elections results Friday.
What you need to know:
- Mat-Su voters narrowly approved extending school board terms from three to four years and elected former state Rep. Jesse Sumner to the board. Sumner defeated longtime incumbent Ole Larson by 69 votes.
- Voters rejected three ballot measures: a 5% alcohol sales tax, a 1% sales tax coupled with a $75,000 property tax exemption and a proposal to expand the borough’s road construction powers.
- Philip Licht and Tom Bergey also won Assembly seats, and three incumbents were reelected in uncontested races. Voter turnout reached 41.32%, exceeding the 40.58% turnout in the 2022 midterm election.
- Short on time but need the local news scoop? Get free weekly news in your inbox for Mat-Su, from Mat-Su.
PALMER — Mat-Su voters approved a measure extending future school board terms by one year and elected former state Rep. Jesse Sumner to the Mat-Su School Board, according to updated election results released Friday evening.
The results add tallies from more than 5,000 absentee, special and questioned ballots to the Election Day count.
The results are final and are scheduled to be certified during a special Assembly meeting Tuesday.
Sumner defeated longtime incumbent Ole Larson by 69 votes in the race for the District 6 Matanuska-Susitna Borough School Board seat. Sumner received 2,436 votes, and Larson received 2,367 votes.
A measure increasing future school board terms from three to four years passed 20,052 to 19,655.
The updated count showed Mat-Su voters soundly rejected a pair of sales tax measures and a measure giving the borough new road powers.
A proposed 5% alcohol sales tax failed 23,049 to 17,320.
A measure establishing a 1% sales tax and a new $75,000 property tax exemption for most homeowners failed 25,692 to 13,753.
A measure allowing the Mat-Su Borough to pursue new major road projects without first seeking voter approval also failed 21,349 to 17,989.
In the race for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough Assembly District 2 seat, Republican Philip Licht defeated Scott Lindbloom, a Democrat, 2,799 to 1,788. Republican Dana Raffaniello received 1,213 votes. District 2 includes portions of Palmer and the greater Palmer area.
In District 1, Republican Tom Bergey, a current Mat-Su School Board member, defeated nonpartisan candidate Michelle Heun 3,581 to 2,464. Republican Chris Chiavetta received 704 votes. District 1 includes Butte, Sutton, Palmer-Fishhook and portions of Palmer.
Three incumbents were also reelected to new Assembly or school board terms in uncontested races.
In District 4, incumbent Assembly member Maxwell Sumner, a Republican, received 3,816 votes. In District 5, incumbent Assembly member Bill Gamble, a Republican, received 3,897 votes.
Incumbent Kathy McCollum, a Republican, received 4,369 votes for the District 3 school board seat.
Bergey’s election to the Assembly will leave the District 1 school board seat vacant when he is sworn in early next month. The seat will be filled through an application process and a vote of the school board.
Voter turnout was 41.32%, outpacing the 40.58% turnout in the previous midterm election year of 2022 and substantially exceeding last year’s turnout of 13.73%, when there were no statewide races.