Page created for an undergraduate class at Davidson College.
Wev Shea: Good Candidate?
Biography
Wev Shea (R) was a distinguished attorney in Anchorage, Alaska before running in the 2004 Alaskan Senate primary. He served from 1990-1993, as U.S. Attorney for Alaska . Additionally, he was in the Navy during Vietnam where he was a bombadier-navigator, where he flew 100 missions. (Mauer, 2004) He announced his candidacy later than his two major opponents, Mike Miller (R) and Lisa Murkowski (R).
Campaign Strengths
Shea's primary issue throughout the race was his disgust with the corruption in Alaska's Republican party. His argument centered around Republican Party Chairman, Randy Ruedrich's unethical behavior while working for the Alaska Oil & Gas Conservation Commission, a position he eventually resigned from. Shea is one of the few prominent Republicans denouncing the Party Chair, an issue that Murkowski, the eventual winner, won't address.
Not only did he blast Ruedrich, but he also attacked Miller and Murkowski for their unsatisfactory responses to questions about Iraq. He worried that they have not worked to find a solution for the problem, and that they are also ignoring homeland security threats in Alaska. His strong military background should have added validity to these claims.
Campaign Weaknesses
There are a number of weaknesses with Shea as a candidate. The most glaring: he ran a one-issue campaign. During an important debate, he was asked what he could bring to office, he responded by bringing up Ruedrich and the lack of morality in the Republican party (Mauer & Tsong, 2004).
Another weakness of his campaign was his unwillingness to attack Murkowski on her appointment to Senate. Miller harped on this endlessly while running, and Shea ignored it. In additon, he doesn't have money to run ads, the campaign was financed using only $50,000 of personal funds.
Additionally, he did not differentiate himself from Miller and Murkowski on two important issues to Alaska, gun control and abortion. On gun control the three have nearly identical stances, and Miller and Shea take very conservative views on abortion.
Conclusion
Overall, Shea was not a strong candidate for Senate. He entered the campaign late and focused one issue, losing him party support. Alaska is a dominantly Republican state, speaking against the party would have only lost Republican votes in a general election. He did not have name recognition, like Murkowski, and his stance on Alaska's important issues are not unique. In the general election against Tony Knowles (D), the Democratic nominee, he would have lost Republican votes for his attacks on the party and he would have lost Democratic votes because his stance on important issues was not different than his opponents and he had less name recognition. Shea's campaign had too many flaws to mount a successful bid for U.S. Senate, the voters recognized this and chose Murkowski in the primary.
Send Comments, Questions or Comments to Jamie McCord
Page Created: 9/16/2004
Last Updated: 9/20/2004
