Former Rep. Mary Peltola was ahead of the Republican incumbent in Alaska’s Senate primary on Tuesday.
She was just barely ahead of GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan in polling, but with 80% of the votes counted as of Wednesday morning, Peltola, the Democrat, was ahead by a 6-percentage-point margin.
After adopting a new election process in 2020, Alaskans cast ballots in the primary where Democrats, Republicans and independents were all on the same ballot.
The top four candidates will proceed to the general election in November.
If Peltola wins in November, she would be the first Democrat elected to the Senate since 2008.
She, along with Democrats across the country, are hoping that a win in November would either chip away at or completely flip control of the Senate as one of several key races this year.
In order to take control of the Senate, which Republicans currently control 53-47, Democrats need to pick up a net of four seats, which could be an uphill battle and means there’s a handful of important races across the country.
Alaska is proving to be one of the more surprising ones.
Sullivan has held his seat in the upper chamber since being elected in 2014, beating out the last Democrat from the state to be elected to the Senate. He is hoping for a third term, but with Democratic momentum across the country and in his state, it may not happen.
As of Wednesday morning, NBC News reported that Peltola has 48% of the primary vote compared to Sullivan’s 42%, but there are still about 34,000 votes left to be counted.
Peltola said the results show Alaskans are “fired up and ready for an independent voice in the Senate.”
Sullivan has been a consistent vote for the Republican party compared to the state’s other senator, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who has clashed with President Trump over certain issues.
He’s also had to face an unusual issue in the primary, another person named Dan Sullivan, running as a Republican.
That Dan Sullivan, a retired teacher and employee for the U.S. Forest Service, only received about 2.4% of the vote Tuesday, but will advance to the November ballot. Some voting maps show there’s a possibility that since all candidates appear on the same ballot, Democrats are tactically voting for this Sullivan to draw away support from the senator.
Sen. Dan Sullivan tried to get him kicked off the ballot and alerted voters not to accidentally vote for the other man.
The race between the Sen. Sullivan and Peltola come November may change from the primary race. Primary results are typically highly-engaged voters and more enthusiastic about the candidate. But they don’t make up for all voters that will cast ballots come November.
House race results
The Alaska House race is also one to watch.
Rep. Nich Begich, a Republican, will advance to the November election as he tries to secure his second term. He earned 46.1% of the vote. Begich flipped the seat in 2024 after beating Peltola.
Bill Hill, a nonpartisan candidate, earned 31% and will also compete in the November election. Hill, a fisherman who ran as an independent, faces an uphill battle to oust Begich, but Alaska is surprising with its independent streak, particularly with Peltola’s success so far.
Two other candidates will appear on the November ballot. Democrat Matt Schultz recently suspended his campaign and endorsed Hill, essentially clearing the way for the two-way race.
A fourth will advance to November with Democrat Eric Hafner on the ballot, too. Hafner, however is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
He was convicted in 2022 of threatening to kill judges, police officers and others, and making fake bomb threats. Hafner is currently in a New York federal prison serving his sentence.
He also ran against Peltola and Begich in 2024.