Letters to the editor

Published 5:30 am Thursday, July 16, 2026

About ballot measure on ranked choice voting

A “NO” Vote opposes eliminating the campaign finance provisions, top four primaries, ranked choice voting general elections, approved by voters in 2020.

You may hear people say that thousands of ballots were “trashed” in Alaska’s 2024 election. That’s not what happened.

Every valid ballot was counted. Your vote counted for every candidate you ranked.

Don’t be fooled! In any voting system, if your candidate doesn’t get enough votes, they don’t win.

It doesn’t mean your ballot was “trashed.” It just means you didn’t vote for the winner.

In no voting method now or historically used in Alaska are ballots discarded.

Every voter has the chance to choose one candidate of their choice in the primary, then rank their favorites in the election. It’s like ranking anything in order of preference. The winner will only win if 51% of voters choose that

Cathleen Rolph

A salute

I was in Homer’s 4th of July Parade as a member of the Veterans for Peace unit. All the flag wavers and cheers and “Thanks for your service” were heartwarming, but when I saw the fire department ladder trucks form an arch with the huge American flag suspended at the peak, a flood of emotions came over me. The tears welled up as I remembered 9-11 events and how this country pulled together as Americans—not Democrats or Republicans, but true patriots!

I served in the Marine Corps during the ‘Nam’ era and have friends on the Vietnam Memorial Wall. Our skin color might be different, but it was all American red blood we bled.

Can we all pull together to ensure our kids and grandkids have a unified, world respected democracy that celebrates Independence Day for generations to come? THINK ABOUT IT!

Mike McCarthy