North Slope Borough Assembly elects Avaiyak Burnell president and seats runoff winner Lozano

The North Slope Borough Assembly elected Avaiyak Burnell as its president, the borough announced Friday, Nov. 13. Burnell replaces Crawford Patkotak, who was Assembly president for three years. The Assembly also re-elected Trina Paul as vice president.

"I want to thank Crawford Patkotak for his three years of service as Assembly President and for the time and commitment he has given to this important role," Burnell said in the borough's announcement.

At the same session, the Assembly certified the results of the Nov. 3 runoff election. It welcomed Stefanie Lozano as the new member for District A-3B, the Barrow seat, according to the borough announcement.

Lozano won 855 votes, or 64 percent of the 1,336 votes cast, the official runoff results show. Craig Moore Jr. received 472 votes, or 35.33 percent. Write-in candidates received nine votes. The borough's earlier unofficial results had shown Lozano with 759 votes and Moore with 440. The final count grew after more ballots were verified.

The runoff was held on the same day as the Alaska general election. The borough said they were separate elections, with separate ballots and different polling hours.

The seat went to a runoff after the Oct. 6 regular election, the same election in which voters reelected Mayor Josiah Aullaqsruaq Patkotak and approved all 11 borough bond propositions. In that three-way race for District A-3B, Lozano led with 600 votes. Moore had 538 and Martin Q. Edwardsen had 462, the certified results in the Assembly's resolution show. Edwardsen held the District A-3B seat before the election, the borough's Assembly roster shows.

The Assembly's last regular meeting of the year is set for Dec. 1.