August 25, 2010 06:42 PM UTC

Tea Party Strikes Again?

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• by: Colorado Pols

It looks as though the Tea Party may be about to claim another victim from the field of Republican incumbents. As Politico reports:

In what could become one of the biggest political upsets of the year, Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski trailed her tea party-backed opponent by a small margin Wednesday in Alaska’s GOP primary with thousands of votes yet to be counted.

Attorney Joe Miller, who also had the backing of former Gov. Sarah Palin, led Murkowski by less than 3 percentage points with 98 percent of precincts reporting. Thousands of absentee ballots have not yet been added to the tally from Tuesday’s vote – a process that could take up to two weeks to tabulate.

If Murkowski loses, she would become the third senator this year to be ousted by a primary challenger. Her defeat would also be one of the most stunning losses in the state’s short 51-year history and a sure sign that Palin’s endorsement still carries weight with voters in Alaska.

Not a single public poll showed Miller within striking distance of Murkowski in the weeks before the primary, and she spent more than 10 times as much as he spent.

If Murkowski does end up losing to the unknown Miller, it would indeed be a stunning upset that could significantly change the dynamics of Republican Senate leadership. Murkowski is the ranking member on the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and has been a huge supporter for Big Oil and against EPA regulations. As of the Aug. 4 reporting period, Murkowski had raised $2.9 million compared to just $283,000 for Miller.