Incumbent assembly member Joanne Waterman cruised by challenger Jim Studley and former City of Haines Mayor Dave Berry topped Jono Greene for an open seat in Tuesday’s Haines Borough election.
Voters also exempted local political candidates from State of Alaska financial disclosure requirements. The vote tally was 457-362, or 56 percent approval.
The vote was the third ballot measure on disclosure in the past five years.
Advocates said state requirements – including reporting sources and amounts of income more than $1,000 – were intrusive and discouraged potential candidates. As part of the ballot measure, voters endorsed more relaxed disclosure regulations recently adopted by the assembly.
Unopposed school board candidates Royal Henderson, Sara Chapell, and Brenda Jones also were elected with 682, 661, and 630 votes, respectively.
A fourth, school board seat that attracted no candidates will be filled by board appointment.
Vote tallies included Waterman-Studley, 534-284, and Berry-Greene, 449-362. Voter turnout was 38 percent, down from 53 percent last October.