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JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Republican Nick Begich has won Alaska’s U.S. House race, defeating Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola to claim the seat once held by his grandfather.
Begich was among the opponents Peltola defeated during her special and regular election wins in 2022, following the death of Republican Rep. Don Young. Young had held the seat for 49 years. Peltola, who is Yup’ik, was the first Alaska Native in Congress.
Republicans, seeking to maintain control of the House, eagerly sought to win back the seat.
Wednesday marked the deadline for elections officials to receive ballots mailed from overseas for the Nov. 5 election, and it was also when ranked choice vote tabulations were done. State officials were targeting Nov. 30 to certify the general election.
Begich, in a statement on social media, said Alaska has great potential, “but much work remains for Alaskans to fully realize that potential. I am committed to fighting for our jobs and economy, protecting our unique way of life, and ensuring that our voices are heard loud and clear in Washington.”
He also thanked Peltola “for her service to the state and nation in what is an exceptionally challenging role during an exceptionally challenging moment in our national history.”
Peltola said working for Alaskans as part of the state’s three-person congressional delegation had been “the honor of my life.”
“Nick, I’m rooting for you,” she said. “Please don’t forget when D.C. people keep telling you that you are one of three, you are actually one of more than 700,000 Alaskans who are ready to fight for our state, myself included.”
Begich comes from a line of Democratic politicians: his grandfather, the late Rep. Nick Begich, held the House seat before Young. One of his uncles, Mark, was a U.S. senator, and another, Tom, was a state senator. Begich has said he is a lifelong Republican.
Begich went all-in in the lead-up to the August primary, saying he would drop out of the race if he finished behind another Republican. He said he saw that as a way to drive interest in the open primary, in which the top four vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the ranked choice vote general election. To some, the primary had almost an anticlimactic feeling.
Peltola, Begich and Republican Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom were the most prominent candidates among the 12 competing in the primary. Dahlstrom boasted support from now-President-elect Donald Trump and House leaders. Dahlstrom, who finished third in the primary, behind Peltola and Begich, faced pressure from Republicans to consolidate behind Begich, and dropped out of the race, as did the Republican who finished a distant fourth.
That allowed inclusion on the ballot of the fifth- and sixth-place finishers from the primary, Alaskan Independence Party candidate John Wayne Howe and Eric Hafner, a Democrat with no apparent ties to Alaska who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for threatening authorities and others in New Jersey. The Alaska Democratic Party unsuccessfully sued to disqualify Hafner.
Trump, who had blamed Begich for Republicans losing the seat in 2022 in races that also included 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin, threw his support to Begich after Dahlstrom withdrew. During a tele-rally for Begich in October, Trump called Peltola’s election a “fluke.”
“Nick Begich will be an incredible fighter in Congress and will work closely with me to deliver for the people of Alaska,” Trump said.
Begich, the founder of a software development company, was vocal in his support of Trump and swiped at Peltola for refusing to endorse a candidate in the presidential race.
“Some candidates in this race don’t want to tell Alaskans who they support for president, but Alaskans deserve transparency from their representative in Congress. We deserve to know whether they’ll align with those with a pro-Alaska agenda or with those who want to lock our state down,” he said in September.
Begich and Peltola shared common ground on some energy issues, but Begich sought to cast Peltola as ineffective in stopping actions taken by the Biden administration seen as limiting resource development.
On the same general election ballot, Trump carried the state, and voters were asked whether to repeal the open primary and ranked vote general election system they had approved just four years earlier. The system was used for the first time in 2022.
Begich endorsed the repeal effort. That race remained uncalled Wednesday night pending certification and any potential recount requests.
Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press