Alaska Certified Top-Four Blanket Primary Advances Contenders for Statewide U.S. House Seat

ANCHORAGE, AK — Unofficial election returns from Alaska's statewide nonpartisan primary on Tuesday finalized the top four candidates advancing to November's ranked-choice general election for the state's sole at-large seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Top-Four Primary Mechanics and Vote Distribution

Under Alaska’s nonpartisan open primary system established by Measure 2, all candidates appear on a single ballot regardless of political affiliation, with the top four vote-getters moving forward to the general election. Initial tallies from the Alaska Division of Elections showed incumbent Democratic Representative Mary Peltola capturing 49.8 percent of the statewide vote, followed by Republican Nick Begich III with 27.2 percent, Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom with 18.1 percent, and Independent Matthew Salisbury securing fourth place with 3.4 percent.

Peltola campaigned on her bipartisan record in Congress defending Alaskan energy infrastructure, securing federal funding for rural water and wastewater systems, and advancing federal protections for subsistence fisheries.

Ranked-Choice General Election Dynamics

The four-way general election in November will utilize ranked-choice voting (instant runoff). The contest will focus heavily on federal public lands policy, Arctic natural resource development, and federal investments in military bases across Fairbanks and Anchorage.

Campaign strategists noted that candidate rankings among conservative voters in the second and third rounds of balloting will prove decisive in determining the final outcome.

State Certification Schedule

The Alaska Division of Elections will continue tabulating absentee, military, and rural mail-in ballots over the next 10 days before issuing certified primary results on September 1, 2026.