Photo courtesy Mary Peltola |
The results come more than two weeks after the state used ranked-choice voting to determine which candidate will finish out the term of former Rep. Don Young (R-AK), who died in March 2022. Alaska has one seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and this seat has been vacant since March pending the special election and final results of August 31, 2022.
With 93% of votes counted in the ranked-choice results Wednesday night (Aug. 31, 2022), Peltola had 51.5% of the vote to Palin's 48.5%. According to Alaskans for Better Elections, of the ballots cast in this race, 11,222 votes were exhausted because the voters did not rank a second candidate.
According to the official results posted by the Alaska Division of Elections, voter turnout was 32.16%. Of the 598,769 registered voters, 192,542 ballots were cas, 398 of 402 precincts reported (99.00%)
Peltola, is a Yup’ik Alaska Native, salmon advocate, and Democrat who represented the Bethel region in the Alaska House of Representatives for 10 years. She is the executive director of the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Peltola was born in Alaska and raised on the Kuskokwim River in Kwethluk, Tuntutuliak, Platinum, and Bethel.
“It is a GOOD DAY," Peltola tweeted following the official special election results. “We’ve won tonight, but we’re still going to have to hold this seat in November.”
According to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the "Republican outside groups massively outspent Democrats – over $1.2 million to lose" the special election.
It will be a short term for Peltola and she will again compete against Sarah Palin and Mark Begich in November 08, 2022 General Election to determine who will serve the full two-year term in the U.S. House of Representatives.
No candidate won more than 50% of the vote in the Aug. 16, 2022 primary election, trigging runoffs under the new system, in which voters ranked the candidates in the primary in order of preference. During that count, Nick Begich was eliminated which triggered another rank choice count between Peltola and Palin.
U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK) in a prepared statement congratulated Mary Peltola on winning the special election to represent Alaska in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Sullivan wrote, "“I congratulate Mary Peltola on winning the special election to serve out the remaining term of the late, great Congressman Don Young. The three-person Alaska congressional delegation has a long and distinguished record of working together to advance and defend the interests of Alaskans, despite not always agreeing on different aspects of politics and policy. Over the next four months, I am hopeful to be able to work with Representative-elect Peltola on the issues that truly matter to our state - combating record-high inflation and energy costs, pushing back against the Biden administration’s unprecedented shutdown of our state, slashing job-killing regulations that limit our potential, unleashing Alaska’s vast natural resources with much-needed infrastructure, continuing the important buildup of our military in the Arctic, achieving sustainable and healthy fisheries for all Alaskans, and addressing social issues like our high rates of sexual assault and domestic violence and the mental health challenges that are impacting so many young Alaskans and Americans.”
According to Alaskans for Better Elections, Alaska’s Election System gave Alaskan voters more choice, voice, and competition on Election Day. A near-record number of Alaskan voters participated in the August 16, 2022 Special Election.
When surveyed after voting, 95% of Alaskans reported that they received instructions on how to rank their choices. Additionally, 85% of Alaskans reported ranked choice voting was “simple.”
"These are fantastic numbers - they really reflect the willingness of Alaskans to learn about our new system and understand the benefits," said Jason Grenn, Executive Director for Alaskans for Better Elections. "It's also a testament to the hard work of the Division of Elections and many organizations across the state who are determined to make sure our elections inspire confidence and work well for each and every Alaskan voter. We will continue to work with our fellow Alaskans to ensure these reforms are seen for what they are – nonpartisan, simple, and meant to put voters first.
Quoting a news release from Alaskans for Better Elections, voters were given broad choice and competition between the three candidates in the Special Election. It was a tight 3-way race where Alaskan voters were able to have more choices than a partisan battle between only two party-selected candidates.
Historically, the person with the most 1st choice votes wins in a ranked choice election. Ranked choice voting encourages candidates to build consensus and earn support from a broad coalition. Ranked choice voting incentives collaboration while disincentivizing negative campaigning.
Alaskans for Better Elections said the ranked choice voting system performed well as expected, due in large part to the historic efforts of the Division of Elections to educate voters while pulling off three distinct elections in as many months. Of the ballots cast in this race, only 6% (11,222) were exhausted (or didn’t rank a second candidate). Even better, only 0.2% (342 votes) were over-votes, or had errors rendering them unable to count. In short, Alaskans understood the new system well, voted successfully, and seized their power to choose.
According to Alaskans for Better Elections, Alaskan voters were prepared for their first-ever ranked choice election thanks to the incredible work of the Alaska Division of Elections and community organizations like Get Out the Native Vote, League of Women Voters, AARP Alaska, Alaska Municipal League, Sol de Medianoche, Polynesian Association of Alaska, The Alaska Center, AKPIRG and many others.
DCCC Chair Sean Patrick Maloney wrote in a statement, “A warm congratulations to Mary Peltola on tonight’s historic victory. As the first Alaska Native ever elected to Congress, Mary will be an authentic and fierce voice for all Alaskans. Mary’s win sends a resounding message that only confirms what we already know: voters across this country are furious over Republicans’ extreme attacks on their fundamental freedoms. Mary ran on local Alaska issues and protecting abortion rights; as a result, she has earned a well-deserved place in Congress. I look forward to working with Congresswoman-elect Peltola and our fellow Democrats as we continue to deliver for the American people and protect them from Republicans’ assaults on abortion rights.”
Sarah Palin wrote on Twitter on Sept. 1st, "Best of everything to @MaryPeltola in service to our state and country as she finishes Rep. Don Young’s term in office.
In a statement posted on Twitter on Sept. 1st, Palin called on her Republican opponent, Nick Begich, to withdraw from the race for Alaska's at-large congressional seat.
In that statement Palin called on the Alaska Division of Elections to realease all data on the number of ballots they rejected, via the Dominion Computer System, the precise reason for rejecting ballots, and an explanation for this extended timeline in allowing Alaska to be represented in Washington,writing Alaska has gone for eight months with no representation in Congress. (Read the full message posted on Twitter or if you do not subscribe to Twitter, click here for a photo screen shot of the full statement.)
In an earlier statement posted on Twitter on August 31, 2022, Palin wrote, "Ranked-choice voting was sold as the way to make elections better reflect the will of the people. As Alaska - and America - now sees, the exact opposite is true. The people of Alaska do not want the destructive democrat agenda to rule our land and our lives, but that's what resulted from someone's experiment with this new crazy, convoluted, confusing ranked-choice voting system. It's effectively disenfranchised 60% of Alaska voters." (Read the full statement on Twitter or if you do not subscribe to Twitter, click here for a photo screen shot of the full statement.)
On the Alaska Divison of Elections website, the following candidates will be on the November 8th ballot as of this date:
Begich, Nick (Registered Republican) (Certified)
Website: https://www.alaskansfornickbegich.com
Bye, Chris (Registered Libertarian) (Certified)
Website: https://www.itstimealaska.com
Palin, Sarah (Registered Republican) (Certified)
Website: https://sarahforalaska.com
Peltola, Mary S. (Registered Democrat) (Certified)
Website: https://www.marypeltola.com
Sweeney, Tara M. (Registered Republican) Withdrawn
Website: https://taraforalaska.com/
Certified Write-Ins:
Ambrose, David (Certified)
Website: https://www.ambroseforak.com/
On the Web:
State of Alaska 2022 PRIMARY ELECTION Election Summary Report August 16, 2022 OFFICIAL RESULTS
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