Republicans are fighting two election battles in Alaska as they try to win back the state’s lone House seat that they lost in 2022.
The GOP is preparing to do battle in the 12-person, all-party primary on Aug. 20, in which four Republicans are facing off against two Democrats, three nonpartisans, one Alaska Independence Party candidate, one from No Labels and one candidate who is undeclared.
At the same time, Republicans are fighting the state’s new ranked choice voting system that took effect in 2022. A measure is on the ballot from activists who want to see it repealed in the next election cycle.
The House Republicans’ national campaign arm also has slammed the system.
“If you can’t win fair and square, change the rules — that’s Democrats’ playbook,” said National Republican Congressional Committee press secretary Will Reinert. “Extreme Democrats want to blow up the Electoral College, abolish the filibuster and pack the courts — who knows what creative schemes they’ll think up next.”
In the House race, former President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind Alaska GOP Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom.
Mr. Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, lauded Ms. Dahlstrom in a post on his Truth Social site, praising her as a “winner” and a “proven fighter” who “will not let you down.”
Ms. Dahlstrom, who previously served as a state lawmaker and Commissioner of Corrections, is facing two other high-profile candidates: first-term Democratic incumbent Rep. Mary Peltola and fellow Republican Nick Begich III.
Ms. Dahlstrom also has won the support of House GOP leaders — Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik and Whip Tom Emmer all are backing her. These endorsements are on top of support from Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy.
On Mr. Begich’s side are former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Reps. Byron Donalds of Florida and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, both of the Freedom Caucus.
Former GOP Gov. Sarah Palin in 2022 ran two failed bids, in special and general elections, for the state’s House seat, which was occupied for decades by the late Republican Rep. Don Young.
Despite Republicans’ preparation for the election this cycle, frustration abounds about the ranked choice voting system.
Republicans in Alaska, according to reporting by the Anchorage Daily News, say they will not favor a candidate among the Republicans running for the House. So GOP leaders at the state convention in April urged voters to “rank the red.”
“You can support Nick Begich 100%. You can support Nancy Dahlstrom 100%. Just make sure that if both of them make it onto the general ballot … you vote for the other one second,” said outgoing Party Chairwoman Ann Brown.
Mr. Trump has slammed the system and called it “ranked choice crap voting” during a July 2022 rally for Ms. Palin in Anchorage.
“You never know who won in ranked choice. You could be in third place and they announce that you won the election,” Mr. Trump said. “It’s a total rigged deal. Just like a lot of other things in this country.”
Alaska now has a top-four primary system, which means all candidates regardless of party affiliation are on one ballot. The four candidates who win the most votes advance to the general election in November.
During the general election, voters use the ranked choice voting system, where they rank candidates in order of preference as opposed to selecting one candidate. The race is called if a candidate garners more than 50% of the first-place votes cast.
However, if no candidate gets more than 50%, the candidate with the fewest votes is removed from the race. When a voter’s first choice is eliminated, the voter’s second choice becomes the new first-preferred candidate.
The voting rounds continue until one candidate receives more than 50% of the votes. The voting system is popular among moderate and third-party candidates, as it gives them a better chance of winning elections.
Mr. Trump, in his endorsement of Ms. Dahlstrom, blamed Mr. Begich for not leaving the race two years ago, allowing Ms. Peltola to win while the GOP vote was divided between Ms. Palin and Mr. Begich.
Mr. Trump said Mr. Begich has “Democrat tendencies,” a likely reference to the candidate’s Democrat uncle who served as a U.S. senator, despite Mr. Begich’s Republican registration and endorsements from the House Freedom Caucus Fund.
Mr. Begich has pledged to drop out of the race to avoid splitting the GOP vote in the general election if Ms. Dahlstrom defeats him in the primary.
The Washington Times reached out to the Trump campaign for comment but did not hear back.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.