Democrat Mary Peltola won the by-election for Alaska’s only House of Representatives seat, beating a slate of candidates that included Republican Sarah Palin, who was seeking a return to politics in the state whose she was governor.
Posted at 10:52 p.m.
Mme Peltola, who is Yupik and turned 49 on Wednesday, will become the first Alaska Native to serve in the House of Representatives and the first woman to hold that seat. She will occupy the last months of the mandate of the late Republican Representative Don Young. Mr. Young held that seat for 49 years before his death in March.
The victory of M.me Peltola, which took place in Alaska’s first statewide election, is a boon for Democrats, especially after better-than-expected results in nationwide byelections this year, following the annulment of the judgment Roe v. wade by the Supreme Court. She will be the first Democrat to hold the seat since the late U.S. Representative Nick Begich, who was seeking re-election in 1972 when his plane went missing. Mr Begich was later pronounced dead and Don Young was elected to the seat in 1973.
Mme Peltola presented herself as a coalition builder, while her two Republican opponents – Mme Palin and Nick Begich’s grandson, also named Nick Begich – have occasionally clashed. Mme Palin also spoke out against the importance voting system, which was instituted by voters in Alaska.
PHOTO SHELBY TAUBER, REUTERS ARCHIVES
Republican Sarah Palin
The results fell 15 days after the Aug. 16 election, meeting the deadline for state election officials to receive mail-in ballots sent from outside the United States. The counting of the votes in order of preference took place on Wednesday, with no candidate obtaining more than 50% of the first-preference votes. Mr. Peltola was in the lead at the time of the count.
Wednesday’s results were a disappointment for Mme Palin, who was seeking a comeback in politics 14 years after she was thrust onto the national stage when John McCain chose her to be his running mate in the 2008 presidential election. , she enjoyed widespread name recognition and gained the support of former President Donald Trump.
Commitment questioned
But critics have questioned his commitment to Alaska, citing his decision to step down as governor in July 2009, halfway through his term. Mme Palin then became a conservative TV commentator and appeared on reality shows, among other things.
Sarah Palin’s loss in this by-election does not necessarily mean that she has lost her chance to secure a seat in the House of Representatives. With Mme Peltola and Mr. Begich, she is among the candidates running for a full two-year term to be decided in the November general election.
Mme Palin has insisted that her commitment to Alaska has never wavered and said ahead of the by-election that she was “committed for the long haul.”
An “ordinary” Alaskan victorious
Mme Peltola, a former state legislator who recently worked for a commission to restore the salmon resources of the Kuskokwim River, describes herself as an “ordinary” Alaskan. “I am not a millionaire. I am not an international celebrity,” she said.
Mme Peltola said she hopes the new system will allow more moderate candidates to be elected.
“I really hope that voters will feel that they can vote according to their hearts and that they will not feel pressured to vote for the candidate they think is the most ‘viable’,” said Ms.me Peltola before the by-election. And my hope is that we move away from really extreme type candidates and politicians. »
During the campaign, she underscored her support for abortion rights and said she wanted to push ocean productivity and food security issues forward. Mme Peltola said she received a boost after the special primaries in June, when she won support from Democrats and independents who had run in the race. She believes her positive message has also resonated with voters.
PHOTO BECKY BOHRER, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Mary Peltola
Many people were very attracted by a message of collaboration, positivity, mutual support and unity, and the fact that as Americans, none of us are the enemy of the other. It’s a message people really need to hear right now.
Mary Peltola
Voters in Alaska in 2020 approved an electoral process that replaced party primaries with open primaries. Under this new system, ranked voting is used for general elections.
Ballots are counted in rounds. A candidate can win with more than 50% of the votes in the first round. If no one reaches this threshold, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. Voters who chose this candidate as their first choice have their votes counted for their next choice. The rounds continue until there are two candidates remaining, and whoever has the most votes wins.
In Alaska, the last time voters backed a Democrat for president was in 1964. But the state also has a history of rewarding independent candidates. The state has more registered unaffiliated voters than registered Republicans or Democrats combined.