The August Primary Election will not narrow the field in nearly all Alaska legislative races. If a race has four or fewer candidates, they advance to Alaska’s August Ballot and November election.
Since Ballot Measure 2 was enacted in 2022, creating an “open” primary system that allowed Senator Lisa Murkowski to avoid a Republican primary, the top four vote-getters now move on to the General Election. This year, only three legislative races have more than four candidates: Senate Seat L, Senate Seat R, and House District 36.
With the implementation of Ballot Measure 2, political parties have lost their ability to present their most popular candidate for the General Election.
Unless candidates unexpectedly withdraw, voters will have the opportunity to vote for their preferred candidates in both August and November. However, voters will rank the candidates on Alaska’s August Ballot and November ballot using the Ranked-Choice Voting method, selecting their first, second, and third choices.
Additionally, neither the Alaska Libertarian nor the Green Party has fielded a candidate in the congressional race. Twelve candidates are vying for Alaska’s single congressional seat. After the primary election, this number will be reduced to four, and voters will rank these four candidates in the general election.
Here are some additional notes and observations from the Saturday deadline filings:
In South Anchorage’s House District 9, the race to replace retiring Rep. Laddie Shaw has attracted four candidates. Republican Brandy Pennington filed her candidacy on Saturday. She joins two other Republican candidates, Lucy Bauer and Lee Ellis, and no-party candidate Ky Holland, a liberal who signed the recall petition against Gov. Mike Dunleavy. This race illustrates how voters will encounter the same set of candidates in both the August Primary and the November General Election.
Brent Johnson of Clam Gulch has entered the race for House District 6, where he will challenge incumbent Rep. Sarah Vance. Johnson is a no-party candidate, while Vance represents the Republican party. Other candidates in the race include no-party candidate Alana Greear, a teacher and NEA activist, and Republican Dawson Slaughter. Additionally, Johnson filed to run for the Kenai Borough Assembly earlier this week.
Dana Mock of Fort Greely has filed to run for House District 36, a seat vacated by Rep. Mike Cronk of Tok, who is running for Senate Seat R. Mock, a registered Republican, is the chair-elect of the Alaska Association of School Boards. This group has opposed the governor’s school accountability measures. The current chair of this group is Anchorage School Board President Margo Bellamy. Other candidates for House District 36 include Republican Pam Goode, Libertarian James Fields, Democrat Brandon P. “Putuuqti” Kowalski, Republican Rebecca Schwanke, and Republican Cole Snodgress.
Joy Beth Cottle, a Republican from Fairbanks, has entered the race for House District 34. She works for the fire department and is known for her strong advocacy for reinstating defined benefits for public employees. Cottle is challenging incumbent Rep. Frank Tomaszewski, who is also a Republican. In this instance, voters will encounter two names on the ballot in August and November, and Ranked-Choice Voting will not apply. The ranking serves no purpose when only two candidates are in a race.
Republican Harold Borbridge has submitted his candidacy for Senate Seat F, currently held by Republican Sen. James Kaufman. In 2020, Borbridge contested the special election for then-Senate Seat M against Sen. Josh Revak. However, due to redistricting changes, Borbridge now seeks to succeed Kaufman, who is among the Republicans contributing to the Democratic majority in the Senate. This race exemplifies another instance where voters will encounter the same candidates twice but without the option of ranking.
In the Wasilla House District 28 race, currently represented by Rep. Jesse Sumner, there are now four Republican candidates. Sumner filed his candidacy on Saturday, while Elexie Moore filed last Wednesday. The race also includes Steve Menard and Jessica Wright. All four candidates will advance to November’s ballot for ranking.
