Unofficial primary results show Peltola, Nick Begich and JKT leading races for Senate, House and Governor

Unofficial primary results indicate that in the race for U.S. Senate, Mary Peltola has a tiny lead over incumbent Republican Dan S. Sullivan, with Dan J. Sullivan Jr. (Petersburg Sullivan) in third and Gerald Heikes placing fourth.

In the open primaries, the top four vote-getters move on to the general election in November, which will be a ranked choice election.

 In the race for U.S. House, incumbent Republican Nick Begich III holds a significant lead over independent Bill Hill, with Democrat Matt Schultz, who has suspended his campaign, and Democrat Eric Hafner rounding out the top four.

The top governor’s primary is fought out between two Democrats, with Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins in the lead by two points, over Tom Begich. Republicans Bernadette Wilson and Dave Bronson are in third and fourth position, significantly trailing the top two.

Alaska House Representatives Neal Foster has a huge margin of over 40 percent over challenger Tyler Ivanoff and even more so over Reynold Okitkun.  

Early voting in Nome hit a snag on Saturday morning as The Nome Nugget received a report that the polling place at the Division of Elections office on Front Street was closed although the division’s website stated opening hours beginning at 10 a.m. A spokesperson for the division declined to comment and said Divisions of Elections Director Carol Beecher is still gathering the facts on what happened. The office opened on Saturday afternoon for early voting.

The Alaska Federation of Natives issued a press release on Monday, voicing their concern that the Divisions Region IV office in Nome was not open for early voting as advertised.

“Rural Alaskans should never have to question whether their polling place will be properly staffed or whether the people who step forward to serve their communities will be treated fairly,” said AFN President Ben Mallott. “Election administration is a fundamental responsibility of government. When Alaskans volunteer to take on that responsibility, the State must provide the training, support, timely payment and resources necessary for them to succeed. We need immediate transparency about the staffing situation and a clear plan to ensure every precinct is ready for Election Day.” 

The unofficial results are posted on the Division of Elections website. As of Tuesday night’s election summary report, 198 of 403 precincts in Alaska have reported, with 86,549 votes counted. The final roster of four candidates in each race advancing to the general elections in November won’t be known until the election results are certified on August 31. At that time, candidates will have the chance to withdraw from the race.