Democrat Wins Alaska House Seat Thanks to Ranked-Choice Voting

Democrat Mary Peltola has defeated former Alaska Gov. and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in an Alaska special general election to fill the remainder of former Rep. Don Young’s term in Congress, according to unofficial ranked-choice voting results announced in the state on Wednesday.

The special general election for the vacant seat in Alaska, which was held on Aug. 17, used ranked-choice voting, a measure approved by Alaska residents in 2020 that dismissed the state’s previous election method consisting of partisan elections ahead of general elections. Due to the measure’s approval, all candidates in the special election appeared on the same ballot.

Ranked-choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference on their ballots. Should one candidate receive a majority of first-preference votes, that individual is declared the winner in the race. However, if no candidate wins a majority of first-preference votes, the candidate with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated. Following the elimination of the candidate who received the least amount of first-preference votes, voters’ second-preference choices are evaluated and a new tally is established to determine whether a candidate in the race has received a majority of the vote. That process is repeated until a candidate wins a majority of the vote.

The seat to represent Alaska’s at-large congressional district became vacant after Young, who held the seat for 49 years after winning a special election in 1973, passed away earlier this year.

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A top-four primary election for the seat was held on June 11, which concluded with Palin, Republican Nick Begich, Peltola and independent Al Gross advancing to the special election.

Gross, an orthopedic surgeon and commercial fisherman, withdrew from the race on June 20. The Alaska Supreme Court ruled that fifth-place finisher Tara Sweeney, a Republican, could not advance to the special general election in the absence of Gross.

The special primary election ballot consisted of 22 nonpartisan or undeclared candidates, 16 Republicans, six Democrats, two libertarians, one American Independent Party member, and one Alaskan Independence Party member.

Alaska special election candidates Mary Peltola and Nick Begich are shown participating in early voting on Aug. 12 and Aug. 10, respectively.
(AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

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In the special election primary, Palin received 27% of the vote, Begich received 19% of the vote, Gross received 13% of the vote, and Peltola received 10% of the vote.

Palin received an endorsement from former President Donald Trump, Begich received endorsements from North Pole Mayor Michael Welch, several state House and Senate members, and special election primary candidate John Coghill, and Peltola received endorsements from special election primary candidates Gross, North Pole Councilman Santa Claus, Christopher Constant, Mike Milligan and Emil Notti.

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin speaks as former President Donald Trump looks on during a “Save America” rally on July 9, 2022, in Anchorage, Alaska.
(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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The special general election also took place in accordance with a primary election for Alaska’s at-large congressional district on Aug. 17, with all three candidates who were on the special general election ballot advancing to the November general election where they will face off against challengers to serve a full two-year term in the House. A fourth candidate for the November general election has not yet been announced.

In the primary election, Peltola received 36.8% of the vote, Palin received 30.2% of the vote, and Begich received 26.2% of the vote.

Fox News’ Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.