Unalaska, AK – [Note: This is an updated version of a story posted earlier today.]

Local officials will begin their election investigation proceedings tomorrow morning, in a 9 a.m. meeting that will be open to the public.

In a letter to the city on Monday, City Council candidate Randall Baker challenged the results of last week's election, alleging that large numbers of voters who cast ballots in Unalaska were technically ineligible to vote.

In accordance with city code, City Council members at Tuesday night's meeting voted unanimously to postpone the certification of the election results and authorize the city clerk, attorney and manager to look into Baker's allegations.

The investigation is not a recount. "The procedure and processes of the election will be investigated, not the ballots," City Clerk Debra Mack said at the council meeting.

Mack says that tomorrow's meeting will involve discussions with state officials, because voter registration is a state-level, not city-level, process. Initially, Mack and City Manager Chris Hladick said that a document outlining the investigation process, prepared by the city's attorney, would be available by the end of the workday today. Mack now says it will most likely be posted on the city's website tomorrow morning, before the meeting.

In a letter sent to the Unalaska City Clerk's office October 8th, Baker's lawyer alleged "that substantial numbers of non-residents were allowed and perhaps encouraged to vote" in last week's election. Baker later explained that the allegations were specifically directed at seasonal employees of Unalaska's processing plants.

Because the election certification is now delayed pending the investigation's conclusions, the scheduling of a runoff election for City Council Seat D, for which Baker is a candidate, will now be delayed as well. It was originally planned for October 25.

Last night's council meeting was a short one. Among its few surprises was a 4-2 decision by the council to deny Mayor Shirley Marquardt's request to travel to a scoping meeting for the National Science Foundation's Aleutian Islands risk assessment. Marquardt, who wasn't present for this week's council meeting, had made her own involvement in shipping safety issues a cornerstone of her campaign for reelection. But several council members argued that it would be more useful for one of the city's non-elected executives like the city manager to go to the meeting in her place. Only Roger Rowland and Juanita Lewis voted in favor of sending the mayor.

Tomorrow's meeting will be held at 9 a.m. at the City Council chambers at City Hall.