Unalaskan attends Democratic National Convention

MONICA SOUTHWORTH

September 04, 2008 at 1:20PM AKST

As an alternate delegate for the state of Alaska, Unalaska resident Jane Bye was up close to the action at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

“The highlight was seeing Michelle Obama. She was awesome and inspiring, and there were a lot of tears in the hall with everyone relating to what she was saying,” Bye said.

Bye also got to see Sen. Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts and Caroline Kennedy at the convention. Other highlights for Bye included seeing media personalities Wolf Blitzer, John King and Katie Couric. Bye heard speeches by Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden.

“A lot of people are asking us about the Ted Stevens race, ANWR, offshore drilling and other (issues),” said Bye from Denver. “The Alaska delegation is wearing matching kuspuks, traditional Yup’ik jackets with the state on the back, and everyone is complimenting us on those, so it’s been a lot of fun to be with the Alaska delegation.”

On the third tier of the convention hall, delegates come and go and even sit on the floor for a part of the time.

Bye said that as an alternate, she doesn’t do anything official unless a delegate is missing. “I kind of have the best of both worlds because I get to experience everything, but I don’t have a whole lot of responsibility and I can wander around and check things out,” Bye said, who doesn’t anticipate having to step up and fill in for a vote.

The first night was the opening session and there were several speakers, including Howard Dean, Nancy Pelosi and other members of Congress. In addition to listening to speeches, Bye sat in on meetings and caucuses, including a panel about alternative energy. In the place called the “Big Tent,” Bye ran across all of the bloggers recording the convention, including the Daily Post and Ariana Huffington.

“There was a little spa room Ariana Huffington set up to get healthy food, a massage, or you can do yoga,” Bye said. “So I went to do yoga for 20 minutes one day.”

Bye is a social worker by training, and she had the opportunity to meet and go to a social workers meeting for delegates.

“Social workers are here, and we got a chance to get together, discuss issues and network,” Bye said.

Bye said that most people are excited about Barack Obama’s choice of Joseph Biden as a running mate. She said that she hasn’t seen Obama yet because he is out of state, but he did call in and was on live video after Michelle Obama gave her speech. The convention ended the night of Thursday, Aug.28, after Obama gave his acceptance speech.