Timeline of Joe Miller's 2010 campaign

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — April 19: Joe Miller formally announces his candidacy for the U.S. Senate as a Republican challenger to Sen. Lisa Murkowski.

June 2: Former Gov. Sarah Palin endorses Miller in a post on her Facebook page.

June 23: Shortly after endorsing Miller, the Tea Party Express announces plans to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in support of his campaign.

July 15: The Fairbanks North Star Borough announces that it will release employment records from Miller’s seven years as a part-time borough attorney.

July 19: Tea Party Express representatives arrive in Anchorage to campaign for Miller, shortly after a spokesperson for the group refers to black people as “colored” in a satirical blog post.

August 19: Miller and Murkowski meet in their first debate: Miller claims Murkowski supports Democrats’ health care plan, Murkowski criticizes Miller’s strict interpretation of U.S. Constitution.

August 24: Miller upsets Murkowski in Republican primary, receiving roughly 51 percent of the vote to Murkowski’s 48 percent.

August 31: Murkowski concedes primary race to Miller, “for the good of the State of Alaska.”

September 17: After weeks of speculation on a possible Senate run as a Libertarian, Murkowski announces that she will run in the general election as a write-in candidate against Miller and Democratic candidate Scott McAdams. No candidate has ever won statewide office in Alaska running a write-in campaign.

September 22: Despite statements by state and national Republican leaders closing ranks against Murkowski, the Republican Senate caucus refuses to strip her of her post as the Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s top Republican -- a key referendum on her clout after the primary.

October 7: Miller files months-late federal disclosure forms on his campaign finances. Murkowski and McAdams both filed their forms on time.

October 8: Miller responds to accusations of hypocrisy after admitting that his family used a state program similar to Denali KidCare, the expansion of which he opposed on the campaign trail. This revelation came with others, including Miller applying for a low-income hunting license and charges of nepotism after hiring his wife for a position in Tok.

October 11: Alaska media organizations file a lawsuit to see Miller’s FNSB employment records, prompting Miller to announce that he won’t answer any more questions about his background or personal life.

October 13: Former FNSB mayor Jim Whitaker describes Miller’s responses about his employment as "not truthful," says he felt forced to go public to set the record straight.

October 16: Alaska Dispatch reporter Tony Hopfinger is handcuffed by Miller security guards at a town hall event at Anchorage’s Central Middle School. No charges are filed against anyone after a police investigation.

October 20: Miller files a Federal Elections Commission complaint against Alaskans Standing Together, a pro-Murkowski political action committee heavily backed by Alaska Native corporations.

October 21: Delegates at the Alaska Federation of Natives convention in Fairbanks unanimously endorse Murkowski, after canceling a debate at which Miller was slated to appear.

October 23: Superior Court Judge Winston Burbank grants the partial release of Miller’s FNSB employment records to the media, citing the public’s interest in information about political candidates.

October 25: Alaska’s Democratic and Republican parties file a joint lawsuit against the state Division of Elections’ plans to provide lists of write-in candidates at polling places.

Meanwhile, the three Senate candidates meet at a debate moderated by Channel 2’s Steve MacDonald. Miller advocates reducing Alaska’s reliance on federal funds by building the state’s resource base, while McAdams criticizes tax cuts for the rich; Murkowski describes Miller as “not fit” to lead and McAdams as “not ready.”

October 26: Miller admits to using three FNSB work computers to participate in a political poll, then clearing their cache files and lying when asked about his actions.

October 27: After a Superior Court judge bans providing lists of write-in candidates at polling places, the Alaska Supreme Court reverses that ruling and allows election workers to provide voters assistance as needed -- including write-in candidate lists, if specifically asked.

October 31: Miller criticizes Anchorage CBS affiliate KTVA for an inadvertently extended cell phone message left with his campaign spokesperson, in which several newsroom employees are overheard discussing possible ways to embarrass Miller. Two producers are fired over the incident.

November 2: On the night of the general election, write-in U.S. Senate votes lead Miller’s tally by more than 10,000 votes; McAdams is far behind in third, and concedes the next day.

November 9: Miller files a federal complaint before the count of write-in ballots begins, asking that the state not be allowed to use discretion in determining voters’ intent on write-in ballots.

November 10: The Division of Elections begins its write-in ballot count in Juneau, a week earlier than originally scheduled. Miller says the accelerated count impairs his observers’ ability to challenge ballots that state officials say were cast for Murkowski.

November 12: During the write-in vote count, Miller’s legal team alleges voter fraud at some polling places and files a lawsuit demanding access to election registers.

November 17: Murkowski claims victory in the Senate race, citing write-in count results which give her a 10,000-vote lead over Miller.

November 18: Miller asks for a federal stay on the state’s certification of the Senate race results, which is granted two days later.

November 22: Miller files a state lawsuit in Fairbanks against the use of discretion in determining write-in voters’ intent.

November 25: Alaska Republican Party Chair Randy Ruedrich, one of the leaders who closed ranks against Murkowski during the campaign, posts a point-by-point rebuttal of Miller’s claims about the election on the state party’s website.

November 29: Superior Court Judge Douglas Blankenship moves Miller’s state lawsuit on voter intent from Fairbanks to Juneau.

December 8: Superior Court Judge William Carey hears Miller’s voter-intent suit in Juneau. Miller alleges that the state didn’t follow its own election guidelines in conducting the write-in recount.

December 10: Carey rules against Miller, noting that state statute allows flexibility in determining voter intent.

December 17: The Alaska Supreme Court hears Miller’s appeal of Carey’s ruling. Justices question Murkowski’s assertion that she has enough votes to win even if all 8,100 votes challenged by Miller are thrown out, as well as Miller’s claim that certain statements can’t be trusted in the absence of a recount.

December 22: The Alaska Supreme Court rules against Miller, emphasizing the importance of determining voter intent when individual voters vary in their ability to articulate their choices.