Former Democratic Congresswoman Mary Peltola widened her lead again Friday, though she still has less than 50% of first-choice votes. If that remains so, the race will likely be decided by ranked choice tabulation.
Friday's update added roughly 22,500 ballots to the total. The Associated Press estimates 96% of the Alaska ballots are now counted, but it has not called the closely watched race, now the only unresolved U.S. Senate contest. She’d be part of a 56-member majority. If Sen. Dan S. Sullivan keeps his seat, he’d hold the Democratic caucus to 55.
Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins has now won the race for governor, according to a race call by the Associated Press Friday evening. He currently has 50.8% in the governor’s race, meaning he has more votes than his three Republican rivals combined.
In Alaska’s U.S. House race, Congressman Nick Begich has 47.8% of the vote. Independent Bill Hill, endorsed by the Democratic Party, trailed with 41.7%.
In each race where no candidate won a majority of Alaskans’ first-place votes, the Division of Elections will eliminate the candidate who finished last, and reallocate those ballots to voters' second choices. That tabulation will be on Nov. 18, after the deadline for ballots mailed from overseas to arrive.
And Alaska’s election system will remain unchanged for now after voters rejected Ballot Measure 2, according to an AP race call.
If Peltola wins, she will become the first Indigenous Alaskan elected to the U.S Senate.
Sullivan is a two-term senator and former Alaska attorney general. At the U.S. Capitol, he’s known for his advocacy of Alaska resource development and for championing an expanded military and Coast Guard presence in the North. Sullivan has also been a steadfast ally of Trump. The president flew to Wasilla last month and held a rally to boost Sullivan’s candidacy.
Legal loose ends
The race was roiled in the final days by allegations in a New York Times report that Peltola’s team was involved in recruiting another candidate in the race, Dan J. Sullivan, to try to siphon votes from the incumbent. Peltola denied knowing about the recruitment drive, which remains the subject of state and federal investigations.
The election results seem to nullify a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit filed Oct. 22. It sought to block certification if Sen. Sullivan lost, pending an investigation to determine if confused voters accidentally chose the wrong Sullivan, siphoning a decisive number of votes away from the senator.
As of Friday’s update, though, Peltola’s lead is more than double Dan J. Sullivan’s vote total. She got more votes than both Sullivans combined.
The DOJ is appealing a federal judge’s dismissal of the case. The government did not seek an expedited schedule, so no decision is expected before the new Congress is sworn in.
Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman announced a criminal investigation into the recruitment of the other Sullivan, though he did not cite specific laws that may have been broken. Gov. Mike Dunleavy also said he’s investigating.
While the investigations may create a public relations cloud over Peltola’s campaign, no apparent legal obstacle stands in the way of the state’s final certification of the election, slated for Nov. 25.
