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Wave keeps rolling.

GOP picks up another seat: Begich is all but finished. AP calls Alaska for Sullivan



On election night, I swore I was going to stay up until all the races that didn't feature runoffs had been called. I made it as far as Mia Love's win around 2:30 AM and was forced to ask myself "Am I really going to try to stay awake for Sullivan's win in Alaska?" I gave up and went to bed. I'm glad I did, because if I'd kept my initial vow, I'd be one seriously tired writer today.
The AP has, finally, called the Alaska Senate race. With 40% of the absentee ballots in, Republican Dan Sullivan has defeated Mark Begich. Of course, most of us already had this one in the red column, but Begich has steadfastly refused to concede. As the AP reports:
Sullivan led Begich by about 8,100 votes on Election Night last week and held a comparable edge after election workers had counted about 20,000 absentee, early-voted and questioned ballots late Tuesday. Thousands more ballots remained to be counted, but the results indicated that Begich could not overcome Sullivan's lead.

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The Alaska seat was initially considered key to the Republicans' hopes of taking control of the U.S. Senate, but that goal was accomplished before the Alaska race was decided. Sullivan, in a statement, said he was humbled and sounded a note of inclusion. While it was a hard-fought race, moving forward "I want to emphasize that my door will always be open to all Alaskans," he said. "While we have challenges to address, the opportunities in Alaska and our country are limitless," Sullivan said. "Today, we are going to begin the process of turning our country around and building a brighter future for our children." Begich was not conceding.
Begich is still holding on to the idea that - technically if not realistically - he could pull out a win. Virtually no one thinks it's possible but, hey, if the guy wants to keep fighting, that's his prerogative. In a way, I actually admire his refusal to step aside. As long as there's a shred of hope, why give up? Begich may be waging a losing battle, but I have a soft spot for people who go down swinging. In the end, though, reality will set in. The Dems have lost their Alaska seat. With this win, the GOP has picked up 8 seats in this year's midterms. Our next stop on the "2014 Red Wave Tour" will be Louisiana, where Mary Landrieu has a December 6th date with defeat.


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