Haines voters repeal seasonal sales tax, approve severance tax; Olerud returning as mayor

607 votes in favor of rescinding, 490 vote to keep tax in results so far, a year after it is approved by voters

Charlie Moody receives an “I voted” sticker from election worker Diann Ahrens after voting at the ANB/ANS Hall in downtown Haines on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026. (Will Steinfeld/Chilkat Valley News)

By Lizzy Hahn, Will Steinfeld and Rashah McChesney

Chilkat Valley News

After a three-year hiatus, Doug Olerud will once again return to the mayor’s office in Haines. After the polls closed Tuesday night, Olerud led the other mayoral candidate, Jan Hill, 836 votes to 272 votes. There are only 36 ballots left to be counted, not enough to close the existing deficit.

Olerud previously served a three-year term as mayor ending in 2023, after which he chose not to run for reelection. In an interview last month, he said he “needed a break” following that term, including due to the emotional impact of guiding Haines’ response to the deadly 2020 landslide.

This year, he campaigned with a platform that in many ways paralleled that of his opponent, Jan Hill — herself a former mayor.

Both touted their ability to lead assembly proceedings with respect and efficiency, as well as connections in higher levels of government for bringing in funding and advocating for the borough.

Both also spoke to the need for more economic activity in the borough, but when asked for specifics, pointed to different types of measures they hoped to target. Olerud highlighted better transportation, specifically state ferry service, as a type of economic stimulus. He also said he would throw his weight behind local entrepreneurs, citing start ups like a local custom hot tub maker, or Haines’ brewery.

Hill, on the other hand, advocated specifically for bringing logging and mining jobs to the borough, and argued that community opposition was the main roadblock standing in the way of such jobs.

Ultimately, voters opted for Olerud’s vision. Reached Tuesday night, Olerud said he appreciated the faith shown in him by the community.

Assembly

On the assembly side, the results for the two open seats look to be largely set. Preliminary results show Anne Marie Palmieri holds a large lead with 625 total votes. The second seat will almost certainly be filled by Beau Bradley, who has received 566 votes. That gives him a 48 vote margin over the next highest vote getter, Lee Robinson. There are a maximum of 36 ballots left to be counted, not enough for Robinson to move into second place. 

The fourth highest vote getter was Diana Lapham with 407 votes.

Palmieri is a longtime state employee with the Department of Environmental Conservation. She is also a former school board member. 

In recent weeks, she named the Lutak Dock and cruise industry development as top priorities, arguing in favor of more long-term planning by the borough. 

Bradley is co-owner of The Bookstore on Main Street. Reached Tuesday night, he said he was looking forward to working with Palmieri and had appreciated community engagement during the campaign. 

“This community does care and people want to be involved,” he said. “It’s been such a great opportunity to meet new people and talk about this place that we care about so much.”

Planning commission

On the planning commission, six candidates competed for four open seats.

Incumbents Erika Merklin and Nathanael Reams faced challenges from George Campbell, Kimberly Rosado, Nick Szatkowski, and Zeke Frank. 

Newcomer Zeke Frank is currently in the lead with 683 votes. Frank grew up in Haines and graduated in 2014. He’s a ship superintendent for Lindblad Expeditions. Frank said on Tuesday evening that he has a strong maritime focus with that background and will bring that focus to the planning commission – though he isn’t coming in with an explicit agenda. 

“My goals are continued, responsible economic growth in our community,” he said. 

Nate Reams has the second highest vote tally with 608 votes in his favor, followed by incumbent Erika Merklin with 568 votes. Merklin will be coming in for a second term on the commission, which she has served on since 2023. She ran when commission seats first became elected positions. 

Merklin weathered criticism this election about a property line debate she is resolving with developer Roger Schnabel.

“Now that the election is over, let’s take it down a notch,” she said late Tuesday night.  

The fourth highest vote getter so far is Nick Szatkowski with 529. He is just 23 votes ahead of George Campbell. With the remaining possible votes to be tallied, there could be a swing in that race. 

School board

Two relative newcomers are joining the school board this year at the start of next month, Carlos Jimenez and Jenn Walsh. 

Coming in with the most overall votes this election was Jimenez with 862 votes. Jimenez was appointed to the board during its August meeting. 

Walsh received the second highest votes for school board with 713 votes. 

Two incumbents are returning to the board, Kevin Shove who had the third highest votes with 660. Shove has served two terms on the school board, where he was on the legislative committee. Michael Wald received 581 votes. 

Six people ran for school board, with only four seats available this year. The last two candidates, Cara Gilbert and Burl Sheldon received 438 votes and 292 votes, respectively. 

Top issues amongst candidates were school funding and teacher retention. In an August interview, Walsh also mentioned wanting to advocate for bringing emergency medical technician classes back to the school.

Ballot Initiatives

The seasonal sales tax will be rescinded, just a year after it was put into place by voters in 2025. Starting January 1, 2027, the borough will return to a flat 5.5% sales tax rate in the townsite. 

Tuesday night, with all but a handful of ballots counted, 607 votes were cast in favor of rescinding the seasonal rate, with 490 against.

Voters also came down against a proposal to put in place a new 2% sales tax on alcohol, with 580 voting against and 534 voting in favor.

A new severance tax, however, passed by a large margin. 720 voted in favor and 382 voted against. Beginning in 2027, the severance tax will go into effect on raw materials like timber and mineral ore extracted in the borough but exported and sold outside. 

Outgoing mayor Tom Morphet’s initiative to partially roll back new tax exemptions for seniors failed. In 2023, voters approved doubling property tax exemptions for seniors, up to $300,000 in property value. Morphet’s proposal would’ve dropped that figure to $200,000. 599 voted against and 507 voted in favor. 

Finally, an initiative to return the planning commission to an appointed, rather than an elected body, also failed, with 690 voting against and 383 voting in favor. 

Before certifying results, Denker said the canvas board will review special needs ballots, question ballots and absentee mail-in ballots. Results will be certified by the sitting assembly during the Oct. 27 assembly meeting. 

• This story originally appeared in the Chilkat Valley News.