Alaska Senator to Nowhere

Alaska Republican Senator Ted Stevens became famous for getting an earmark into the federal budget for an expensive bridge between two small islands (the “bridge to nowhere”) and then became infamous for getting convicted this fall on 7 corruption charges. Yet he’s on track to win reelection to his Senate seat, beating Mark Begich, the Democratic Mayor of Anchorage. The reelected Ted Stevens will probably have to resign from the Senate or be expelled, which in either case will require a special election to fill the seat. So by voting for Ted, the Alaska electorate may have been voting for “none of the above.” Still, if you are Mark Begich, losing to a convicted felon has got to hurt.