Republican Moderate Party of Alaska

The Republican Moderate Party of Alaska is a political party in Alaska formed by Ray Metcalfe in 1986 as an alternative to what Metcalfe perceived to be a Republican Party dominated by the Religious Right. Only one candidate has ever won an election, a 2002 race for the state senate, but that candidate re-affiliated with the Republican Party the day after the election. The Republican Moderate Party has extensive litigation-related history, due in no small part to its minor party status. Previous cases have included ballot access rights and an early challenge to its name by the Republican Party of Alaska. After a record of success in the 1990s, its support has slowly dwindled, ending with just 0.63% of the 2002 gubernatorial election.^[1] State law requires that 3% of registered voters vote for a party or be registered to it for recognition. A court challenge initially overturned this law, holding that it was more restrictive than what the state required of independent candidates, but resulted in the original law being upheld by the Alaska Supreme Court on the grounds that a party candidate has more impact than an independent candidate.^[2] The party has since been recognized by the state again. As of October 2010 there were 1,675 members statewide.^[3]

As of January 2011, the Republican Moderate Party is no longer classified as a political party but rather as a political group.^[4]

Actions towards Ben Stevens

The party and its founder have been one of the major voices of criticism toward Ben Stevens, former state senate president and son of US Senator Ted Stevens. Allegations of collusion with oil companies and bribery ran for years,^[5] culminating with an FBI raid on the state senator's office^[6] and his retirement from public life.

References

External links

• Business website

Alaska political parties
With ballot status	Alaskan Independence Democratic Libertarian Republican
Without ballot status	Constitution Green Veterans
Defunct	Republican Moderate
Political party strength in Alaska

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