Democrat Mary Peltola becomes the first Alaska native elected to Congress after defeating former Alaska Gov. and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in a special general election to fill the remainder of former Rep. Don Young's term.
The special general election for the vacant seat in Alaska was held on Aug. 17 and used ranked-choice voting, which is a measure approved by Alaska residents in 2020. It dismissed the state's previous election method consisting of partisan elections ahead of general elections.
Alaska's Special General Election
Due to the approval of the measure, all of the candidates in the special election appeared on the same ballot. This style of voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference on their ballots. If one candidate receives a majority of first-preference votes, he or she 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. After that, 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, as per Fox News.
The results come as 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.
On June 11, a top-four primary election for the seat was held, which concluded with Palin, Republican Nick Begich III, Peltola, and independent Al Gross advancing to the special election. Gross, who is an orthopedic surgeon and commercial fisherman, withdrew from the race on June 20.
According to Anchorage Daily News, Peltola topped Palin after ballots were tallied and after votes for third-place GOP candidate, Begich III was redistributed to his supporters' second choices. Peltola is a former state lawmaker who calls Bethel her home.
Alaskan Native to Congress
The moment after results were announced in a live video by state election officials in Juneau, Peltola said, "I feel like I need to catch my breath for a minute." She was surrounded by family and campaign staff at an Anchorage office at the time of the results announcement.
She added that what was important is that she is an Alaskan who is being sent to represent all Alaskans. Peltola added that while yes, she is an Alaska native, she is much more than just her ethnicity.
The results are largely seen as an upset as Peltola becomes the first Democrat to join Alaska's three-person congressional delegation since U.S. Sen. Mark Begich lost re-election in 2014. She also defeated two Republican lawmakers to achieve the results. Palin and Begich III, combined, commanded 60% of first-place votes.
Peltola is Yup'ik and is a tribal fisheries manager who previously led in initial counts after the Aug. 16 election. However, her victory was not assured until Wednesday, prompting her to thank the people who supported her and put their trust in her. During an interview, she had to break away to take a call from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, adding that she will immediately go to work, the Washington Post reported.
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