Alaska’s US House race early results indicate that Nick Begich III has gained an early lead in the race for Alaska’s US House Seat. Begich is ahead of current Democratic Congresswoman Mary Peltola by 5,264 votes or around 5%, with more than 40% reporting. Trump had endorsed Begich earlier in the race. Begich, a Chugiak-based Republican from a well-known Democratic family, could reclaim the House seat once held by his grandfather, former Congressman Nick Begich, who disappeared in 1972 in his chartered plane while campaigning.
In downtown Anchorage, Begich supporters gathered to celebrate him at his election party. The crowd celebrated updates showing him ahead. The excitement grew as the results of the national presidential race also came in, with former President Donald Trump leading the critical battleground states. Peltola supporters followed both national and state election updates at a gathering of their own. Democrat Jane Angvik voiced confidence that Peltola can still advance, adding that Peltola has built strong relationships across party lines. “She can work with whoever is the president in the United States, and that is to our advantage,” she said.
This year’s race saw Peltola facing Begich without any other Republican candidates in the general election. Begich benefited from this support shift, along with large amounts of national funding, in one of the country’s most competitive House races. Political groups poured over $28 million into the race, nearly splitting spending between both candidates, which significantly reduced the Peltola campaign’s 6-to-1 fundraising edge.
Independent candidates also garnered a small share of the vote. John Wayne Howe of the Alaska Independence Party got about 4.5%, while Democrat Eric Hafner, a federal inmate, got 1%. The results include only first-choice votes; officials will conduct a ranked-count choice on November 20 if no candidate receives 50% of the vote.
This news article was originally published by Alaska Public Media.
