text: CONSIDERING OPTIONS: There's a chance Murkowski could run as a Libertarian if Miller beats her. 
   
   The Alaska Division of Elections said Thursday that it has more than 20,000 absentee and questioned ballots left to process from Tuesday's primary election. Most are expected to be Republican primary ballots that will decide the too-close-to-call race between U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Joe Miller. 
   
   Miller is currently leading Murkowski by 1,668 votes. 
   
   Elections officials on Thursday evening released the first detailed breakdown of the remaining ballots. 
   
   The state has received back 11,266 absentee ballots so far out of over 16,000 requested. The ballots had to be postmarked by Tuesday's election but can come in as much as 15 days afterward. 
   
   There are also 658 early votes not yet counted and 8,972 questioned ballots. A ballot can be "questioned" for several reasons. Often the reason is that the voter cast the ballot in a precinct other than where they live. 
   
   Miller said in a Thursday interview that he expects to maintain his lead with the help of military absentee voters. He also said Murkowski shouldn't think about a third-party candidacy or an independent write-in effort if she loses in the primary. 
   
   "If Sen. Murkowski is going to keep her word, she's going to get out -- if the voters decide that in fact I prevail in this primary election. She said at the Kenai forum on Friday that she would respect the will of the Alaskan voter and we're going to hold her to it," Miller said by phone from Fairbanks. 
   
   Murkowski campaign manager John Bitney responded that Murkowski was focused on the ballots that are left to be counted and "any speculation about anything else is absolutely premature." 
   
   There is a possibility that Murkowski could run on the Libertarian ticket in the November general election if she loses the Republican primary. The Alaska Libertarian Party is discussing the possibility and its Senate candidate, David Haase, has said he is open to talking to Murkowski about him stepping aside. 
   
   Andrew Halcro, a Murkowski supporter who served with her in the state Legislature, called Haase on Wednesday and discussed the possibility. Halcro said he was acting on his own and not coordinating with the Murkowski campaign. 
   
   Halcro said he did bring it up with Murkowski on Thursday morning. "She said what she's told (the media), that she's considering all the options," he said. 
   
   Halcro said he thinks Murkowski should pursue the Libertarian route if she doesn't win the primary. She has the campaign cash left and a network in place to run a strong statewide campaign, he said. 
   
   THREE MORE COUNTS 
   
   The Division of Elections isn't saying how many of the ballots left to count are for the Republican primary and how many are for the Democratic primary. 
   
   But three times more Republican than Democratic ballots were cast on Election Day in the Senate race. Murkowski campaign manager Bitney watched absentees being sorted at the Division of Elections Thursday and said a "very, very high percentage" of them were Republican. 
   
   Anchorage attorney Tom Van Flein was at the Division of Elections observing for the Miller campaign. 
   
   Van Flein is best known as the personal lawyer for Sarah Palin, who endorsed Miller. 
   
   The Division of Elections plans to count all the absentee ballots on Aug. 31 that it has received by then. Some of the questioned ballots will be disqualified; for example if it turns out the voter really wasn't registered in Alaska. Those that are valid will likely be counted on Sept. 3. Elections officials said they'll do a final count of absentees and any other remaining ballots on Sept. 8. 
   
   The number of remaining ballots changes daily as more absentees come in and there's no way to know how many will be disqualified. But if all the current number of 20,896 remaining ballots were counted and three-fourths of them voted in the Republican Senate primary, Murkowski would need the vote on roughly 55 percent to win. 
   
   NATIONAL ATTENTION 
   
   Both sides are keeping close watch. The Washington Post cited unnamed sources in reporting Thursday that the National Republican Senatorial Committee will be sending lawyer Sean Cairncross to assist Murkowski's campaign during the ballot count. It's not clear what his role will be, but Miller called it questionable. 
   
   "We're just hoping that the lawyering up that's going on with the National Republican Senatorial Committee isn't going to be resulting in any improper meddling in our primary," Miller said. 
   
   Miller said he's beating Murkowski because of his volunteer network and "common sense message." 
   
   "Alaskans are common sense folk, they recognize our nation is at a bankrupt position right now," he said. 
   
   Murkowski campaign manager Bitney said people should remember "he hasn't won yet." ||||| Joe Miller, the Republican candidate who is poised to knock off Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) in a primary contest, said Thursday he is concerned she will launch a protracted legal battle to save her seat. 
   
   Miller, an Iraq war veteran who received the backing of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R), emerged from the election Tuesday night with a narrow lead over Murkowski, an incumbent who assumed the seat from her father. 
   
   
   
   But officials are still counting absentee ballots in the close race, and a lawyer for the GOP Senate campaign committee is heading to Alaska to assist the senator. 
   
   
   
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   "We are looking right now to make sure that the election — that the votes — are accounted for fairly, without any type of game play," Miller said in an interview on Fox Business Network. "It concerns us any time somebody lawyers up and tries to pull an Al Franken, if you will. We are very concerned that there may be some attempt here to skew the results." 
   
   Alaska officials will start counting absentee ballots next Tuesday, but observers expect a protracted process to determine the winner. 
   
   Miller was referring to the 2008 Minnesota Senate contest that pitted now-Sen. Al Franken (D) against then-Sen. Norm Coleman (R). Coleman's razor-thin lead the morning after election night triggered an automatic recount that resulted in an eight-month legal battle. 
   
   The candidate expressed concern specifically about the lawyer sent to help Murkowski. 
   
   
   
   "You know we are concerned," he said. "We’ve got, I think, some game play going on here with the national Republican Senatorial Committee meddling in our primary election.” 
   
   
   
   Democrats have pounced on the election results, painting them as an example of GOP infighting that could do in the party in the November midterms. 
   
   
   
   They have also portrayed the election as another potential victory for a Tea Party-backed candidate, a group which Democrats have said is outside the mainstream. 
   
   The primary campaign was contentious and drew national attention in its final days due to Palin's involvement. Murkowski was critical of Palin for writing a Facebook note calling her part of the problem in Washington and referencing the fact that she was appointed to the seat by her father, then-Gov. Frank Murkowski, who was unseated by Palin in 2006. 
   
   
   
   For his part, Miller expressed confidence in the support he has received and predicted he would emerge victorious, barring any "game play." 
   
   
   
   "But, we believe as soon as the votes get counted, if there is not any game play, we are going to come out where we are now.” 
   
  
target: – Still no winner in the Alaska Senate race, but Joe Miller retains his slim lead and incumbent Lisa Murkowski continues to deflect (but not deny) speculation that she's considering a third-party run. Also, still no love lost between candidates, notes the Hill: Upon hearing that the GOP Senate campaign committee is sending a lawyer to help Murkowski, Miller declared, "It concerns us any time somebody lawyers up and tries to pull an Al Franken, if you will. We are very concerned that there may be some attempt here to skew the results." With about 20,000 absentee or questioned ballots still to be counted, Miller leads by 1,668 votes, reports the Anchorage Daily News. He's confident of victory, as rumors fly in the state that Murkowski could run against him in the fall on the Libertarian ticket. The party's current candidate says he'd be willing to step aside for her.