U.S. Rep. Nick Begich III, a Republican running for re-election, waves to a passing motorists on Aug. 18, 2026. Next to him is Julie Sullivan, the wife of U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, another Republican running for re-election. Supporters of both incumbents were holding signs at the intersection of Northern Lights Boulevard and the Seward Highway in Midtown Anchorage. Tom Begich, a Democrat and Nick Begich's uncle, is running for governor and was rallying that morning at the same intersection, but on the other side of the street. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
This article is developing and will be updated.
Early vote counting in Alaska’s statewide, top-four primary election showed no surprises in the state’s two federal races.
For U.S. Senate, Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan and Democratic challenger Mary Peltola led a 16-candidate field with 242 of 403 precincts reporting results as of 10 p.m. Tuesday night.
Peltola had 46.8% of the votes counted to that point, while Sullivan had 44.4%. Republican challenger Dan J. Sullivan of Petersburg was in third with 2.4%, and Republican challenger Gerald Heikes was in fourth with 1.1%.
In the U.S. House race, which had 15 candidates, incumbent Republican Rep. Nick Begich III had 47.1% of the votes counted by 10 p.m., while independent challenger Bill Hill had 30.6%. Democrat Matt Schultz, who suspended his campaign in July to back Hill, had 8.1%, and federal inmate Eric Hafner, a Democratic candidate, had 3.8%.
Vote-counting is expected to continue through Aug. 28, the deadline for mailed absentee ballots to reach the Alaska Division of Elections.
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