A university-sponsored debate between U.S. Senate candidates appears dead after Republican incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski backed out of the challenge last Tuesday.

Touted as a question-and-answer session for students, the Oct. 20 debate would have pit Murkowski against Democratic challenger Tony Knowles in a battle for the over 7,000 UAF student votes. But with Murkowski out, university and media sponsors have been left scrambling for alternatives.

Murkowski said a scheduling conflict prevented her from committing to the event, "and unfortunately the university didn't give us any other alternative date." She will instead attend five other debates, two televised statewide.

"The problem that we have is we've got a situation where we could be debating probably twice a day between the time that Congress is set to adjourn and the time that the election is held," she said, "so unfortunately we simply cannot come to them all."

But event sponsor and journalism chair Elinor Burkett said scheduling should not have been a reason, as sponsors were flexible with the campaign and had announced the date last spring. "They have never offered us the opportunity to change the date," she said.

Murkowski will instead appear before the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce in Juneau for their annual Convention and Business Trade Show, which she agreed to "months ago," Murkowski said. Last year, she, Sen. Ted Stevens and Congressman Don Young teleconferenced the event, but this year the date coincided with a Congressional recess.

Knowles agreed to the debate Tuesday, and spokesman Matt McKenna said they were "disappointed" it wouldn't happen.

"We're still hopeful that she will agree to it," McKenna said, "but we're not surprised Murkowski wants to debate less rather than more."

Murkowski also dismissed an invitation to the Youth Vote and League of Women Voters' debate in Anchorage on Oct. 21, which Knowles accepted. Told this, Burkett asked, "Are they writing off the youth vote?"

Murkowski insisted the decision should "absolutely not" be taken that way. "I'm seeking the endorsement of Alaskans of all ages," she said, "and am very actively seeking out the young voters."

If the debate were held, students would submit questions on any issue to a committee of professors and students. Journalism professor Brian O'Donoghue would moderate, while the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner's political writer, Sam Bishop, would follow up audience questions.

The debate promised to be the election's first televised Senate debate, airing on KTVF-Channel 11 six days before Anchorage's KTUU, Channel 2 News Debate on Oct. 26. Arrangements had been made for KUAC to rebroadcast it statewide later and simulcast it live on two radio stations.

KTVF was in the final preparation stages of getting the debate aired. A clear block of time had been carved into the schedule, said news director Bob Miller, and they were planning to rearrange the studio Sunday to see how many seats they could fit.

"Nobody could possibly have given them more coverage than we could," Burkett said.

Murkowski's campaign is not worried about losing Fairbanks media and university support, said spokesman Elliot Bundy, and "don't think anyone will feel alienated." Murkowski will appear with Knowles at the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce's untelevised debate on Oct. 19, a "well-established" debate, Bundy said.

Kara Mariarty, the Chamber's president and chief executive officer, said their debate will be open to the public and students are welcome to attend. Although it will center on business and development, she said, at least one university question would likely be posed.

As a possible compromise, the Knowles campaign proposed a few weeks ago combining the two debates, according to the News-Miner, but debate organizers balked at the idea, as they wanted to focus on different issues.

Up until even a few days before the announcement, many still expected the debate. Asked during a Sunday appearance at UAF, Knowles said UAF is a "wonderful location to have a debate" and "sets a tone" by taking the contest out of the political ring. Murkowski has not been to a campus event this year.

The journalism department cooked up the idea last March before heavy campaigning had begun. Knowles agreed immediately, Burkett said, but Murkowski campaign manager Justin Stiefel was hesitant due to the upcoming primary.

After the primary, Burkett could not get a hold of Stiefel. She repeatedly called, faxed and e-mailed Stiefel, she said, with no response. With the debate a month away, Burkett drove to the campaign's Anchorage office unannounced to talk to him.

"I have never heard back from him," she said. "There was a reason: they didn't want to do this."

Burkett said she hasn't given up hope, and is pressing for the public to call Murkowski's campaign to complain. If the Senator agrees, the debate may now have to be pre-recorded to accommodate KTVF. The decision is now in Murkowski's hands.

"The point is that, in America, young people generally vote less," Burkett said. "How can we turn this around if candidates won't talk to young people?"

Editor's note: Nate Raymond was an intern for Sen. Lisa Murkowski's Washington, D.C. office during July 2003.

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