The ak senate race remains undecided as Alaska officials continue to count ballots and ranked-choice tallies, with neither major candidate declared a winner.
With roughly three-quarters of votes reported, Democrat Mary Peltola held a narrow lead over incumbent Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan, Reuters reported, and the state is still accepting ballots mailed or flown in from remote communities.
Alaska uses a top-four primary and ranked-choice system, so officials will not complete the ranked-choice tabulation until after the state finishes accepting ballots through November 18, Reuters said. That process could extend the final result by days or weeks.
Local reporting showed Peltola with about 48.2% and Sullivan with about 47.9% of first-choice votes in early tallies, a margin of fewer than 700 votes, while other minor candidates held the remaining share, Reuters and KTVB reported.
Both campaigns urged patience as officials work through absentee and rural precinct returns that can be slower to arrive, and Alaska officials said the ranked-choice redistribution will begin only when the first-round count is complete.
The contested race drew attention because a second candidate sharing the incumbent’s name prompted litigation and allegations of a spoiler scheme; Reuters reported that the Justice Department has opened a probe and that the state’s investigation is ongoing.
This article appears in the Business, Finance section to track political outcomes that can affect policy and markets; for background on Peltola’s campaign staffing, see Mary Peltola names new campaign manager, and for broader midterm stakes see United States midterm election: Republicans hold narrow House and Senate edges ahead.
Sources
- Reuters — reported the vote percentages, explained Alaska’s ranked-choice rules and that ballots are accepted through Nov. 18.
- KTVB — provided local tallies and reported campaigns urging patience as absentee and rural returns continue to arrive.
