A divided party cost Republicans control of Alaska’s lone House seat last cycle — and it might jeopardize their ability to take back the seat this year.
Since joining the union in 1959, Alaska has voted for every Republican presidential candidate except Barry Goldwater. In 2020, it voted for Donald Trump by ten points. But the state has a persistent independent streak and, since 2022, a unique election system that’s allowed Democrats and unorthodox Republicans like Sen. Lisa Murkowski to overcome Alaska’s partisan bent.
Following the death of Don Young, an Alaska icon and the longest-serving member of the House, former Democratic state Rep. Mary Peltola defeated 47 other contenders to become the first Alaska Native to represent the final frontier. Her victories in the special election and subsequent regular election were made possible by the state’s new ranked-choice voting system, which favors candidates with the broadest base of support. As Peltola formed a coalition of Democrats, independents and even some moderate Republicans, GOP voters were divided between polarizing former Gov. Sarah Palin and businessman Nick Begich, the conservative grandson
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