ANCHORAGE, AK – The politically mixed results of Alaska’s midterm election, announced tonight by the state’s Division of Elections, reflected the independent streak of Alaska voters. In the state’s first regular ranked-choice general election, the pairing of the open top-four primary with ranked choice voting yielded a group of winning candidates that, collectively, is moderate and independent, just like Alaska’s electorate.  

• Senator Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Republican, retook her seat in Congress. 

• Representative Mary Peltola, a moderate Democrat, won a full term to the US House. 

• Governor Mike Dunleavy, a populist conservative Republican, won a second term. 

• In the Alaska Legislature a bipartisan majority coalition may control the state Senate, while control of the House is up in the air. 

The system also helped to check extremist candidates; was easy for voters to understand; reduced the power of political parties and hyperpartisan primary voters; and ensured no candidate won without a majority in the final round. 

Jeannette Lee, Senior Researcher and Alaska Lead with the nonpartisan think tank Sightline Institute, has analyzed the results, including background on each of the major races and their candidates’ approaches over the 2022 campaign season. 

“Alaska has a history of going its own way. Voters here are not red or blue but Alaskan, and open primaries and ranked choice voting are proving a winning combination for voters here to express their preferences,” said Lee. “The outcomes are cross-partisan cooperation and coalitions; Republicans and Democrats who represent moderate, independent voters, not party gospel; and a rejection of the kind of extremism that is tearing the country apart and stalling progress on issues most voters agree on—and care deeply about.” 

Read Lee’s full analysis of the election results at sightline.org, plus her recent articles on Alaska’s new system of open primaries and ranked choice general elections, including: 

• Findings that the system delivered a larger, more diverse, and more competitive candidate pool for voters to choose from; 

• A comparison of the differing fates of Liz Cheney and Lisa Murkowski, thanks to their states’ respective primary systems; and 

• How Peltola’s special election win presaged these midterm results, showing voters’ preferences beyond party lines. 

###

  dunleavy, election, murkowski, peltola