Murkowski announces victory!

Unbelievably Murkowski has beaten Sarah Palin backed Republican candidate Joe Miller.

She is making her announcement right now.

I will have more updates, as well as pictures and video later.

The important take away from this is the rejection of the Tea Party, and of Sarah Palin, by the voters of Alaska.  That should send a chill up the spines of EVERY Palin supporter in the lower forty-eight.

Update: Here is ADN's write up.

Speaking to supporters at an Anchorage union hall, Murkowski said, “Today, I think it’s safe to say Alaskans have chosen the path of unity, the deliberative path, the common sense path. And I think they’ve shown that through this write-in process. Can you imagine, over a hundred thousand people who wrote in the same name.”

And here is the Daily Dispatch report:

"Together we, as Alaskans, made history," Murkowski told a room of about 200 cheering supporters. "The campaign is over. Let's go to work." Murkowski is the first person elected to the U.S. Senate through a write-in campaign since South Carolina's Strom Thurmond in 1954.

"We will look back on this and say, 'What a great trip this has been, what a summer this was,'' Murkowski said. "The energy, the enthusiasm, and the excitement that radiated through this campaign was just amazing.''

Here was my favorite quote so far about this result:
Murkowski's run caused a rift, and state GOP chair Randy Ruedrich -- whom Miller once tried to oust -- said the party "stands ready to embrace Lisa Murkowski as Alaska's only Republican U.S. senator. ... We call on Joe Miller to respect the will of the voters and end his campaign in a dignified manner.

So local news station KTUU had Miller on to interview him.  Do you think he "respected the will of the people and ended his campaign in a dignified manner?"

Really?  What, are you new here?

No, he refused, and then claimed that he was worried about the "process' and that he wanted to protect it for future elections. Uh huh.

If you believe THAT, then I have a "Bridge to Nowhere" I might be willing to sell you.

P.S. Just to clear up any misconceptions, I am NOT happy that Lisa Murkowski is still my Senator.  I think she long ago stopped working for Alaskans and started working for the big energy lobbyists.  However she is much, much better than Joe Miller, and sadly once again Alaskans have chosen between the lesser of two evils. If my fellow Alaskans had used their brains even a little they would have all voted for Scott McAdams and we would have a Senator that we could actually be proud of for a change.

Any jubilation I feel is in the fact that both the Teabaggers and Sarah Palin were DENIED!  That part does give me the warm and fuzzies.