Print article The most senior Republican in the Alaska House of Representatives has lost his reelection bid, the Alaska Supreme Court confirmed Friday. In a brief order, the court said Anchorage Rep. Lance Pruitt “has not met his burden to sustain an election contest,” thus confirming an 11-vote victory by Democratic challenger and Rep.-elect Liz Snyder. “It was great to see that come out the way we anticipated it,” Snyder said. Had Pruitt prevailed, it could have been enough to break a 20-20 House of Representatives tie in favor of Republicans. Twenty-one votes are needed to control the House, which is currently divided between a 20-member Republican wing and a coalition including Snyder, 15 other Democrats, three independents and one Republican. Two years ago, a similar deadlock lasted for a month before Rep. Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, was re-elected Speaker of the House.