alaska election results are official: Here are 5 takeaways

Official Certification Confirms Results

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Alaska’s election results were made official on Saturday, after the state review board finished certifying the results.

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Five Key Takeaways

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• Margin growth in ranked-choice repeal: The margin between votes rejecting Ballot Measure 2 and those in favor grew to 737 votes, an increase of 73 votes compared with the unofficial count on Nov. 20.

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• Rep. Nick Begich’s narrowed victory: Over U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, the ranked-choice tabulation gave Begich a 7,876-vote margin, slightly smaller than the unofficial results.

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• Legislative composition unchanged but shifted: The state Senate remains split 11 Republicans and nine Democrats. The Alaska House now has 21 Republicans, 14 Democrats and five independents — one fewer Republican and one more Democrat than the outgoing Legislature.

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• Ballot Measure 1 passes with broad support: The measure will increase the minimum wage in three steps to $15 per hour by July 2027, mandates paid sick leave for all Alaska workers, and bars employers from requiring workers to attend meetings on political and religious issues. It passed by nearly 16 percentage points.

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• Trump’s margin grows, but Alaska trends redder relative to nation: President-elect Donald Trump won Alaska by a 13.13-percentage-point margin, more than 3 points better than in 2020. However, compared with other states, Alaska is trending away from Republicans — his margin ranked 22nd among the states, the lowest for a Republican since Richard Nixon in 1972, and a shift from Alaska having the fourth-highest Republican margin in 2000.

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Sources: Kodiak Daily Mirror, Dec. 3, 2024.