The Alaska Division of Elections released the official results of the Aug. 20 Primary Election on Sunday, cementing who will be on the ballot in the November General Election.
In the race for the U.S. House of Representatives seat, incumbent Democrat Mary Peltola led with 50.89% of the vote. Republican Nick Begich garnered 26.57% of votes, and Lt. Gov. Republican Nancy Dahlstrom had 19.9% of votes but withdrew from the race on Aug. 23 after finishing third.
Fourth-place finisher Republican Matthew Salisbury would have advanced to the General Election but dropped out over the weekend. Replacing Salisbury is Eric Hafner, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence in New York for threatening New Jersey officials, the Alaska Beacon reported.
Alaska Independence Party candidate John Wayne Howe, who finished fifth in the election, will advance to the General Election.
Republican Gerald “Jer” Heikes, nonpartisan Lady Donna Dutchess, nonpartisan David R. Ambrose, Richard Grayson, undeclared Richard “Von” Mayers and nonpartisan Samuel Claesson were dropped from the race.
In Senate District P, Republican Leslie Hadjukovich won 51.35% of the vote and incumbent Democrat Scott Kawasaki had 48.65% of the vote.
In Senate District R, Republican Mike Cronk took 43.77% of the vote and Savannah Fletcher took 42.29% of the vote.
Alaska Independence Party candidate Robert “Bert” Williams finished third.
Republican James Squyres, who finished fourth, withdrew from the race Monday. “You cast your vote in the defense and preservation of Liberty,” he stated in a social media post Monday. “Multiple candidates in a race forces all to work harder, discuss issues, raise awareness and increase turnout at the polls. For this reason, my candidacy was a success.”
Incumbent Republican Kevin McCabe won House District 30 with 54.74% of the vote. Republican Doyle Holmes had 45.26% of the vote.
Incumbent Democrat Maxine Dibert led House District 31 with 51.49% of the vote, followed by Bart LeBon who held 48.51% of the vote.
Incumbent Republican Will Stapp won House District 32 with 66.10% of the vote. Democrat Gary Damron won 33.90% of the vote.
Rep. Mike Prax (R-North Pole) was the lone candidate in House District 33 for the third time. He received 100% of votes cast.
Incumbent Republican Frank Tomaszewski received 53.57% of the vote in House District 34, with Republican challenger Joy Beth Cottle taking 46.43% of the vote.
In House District 35, incumbent Democrat Ashley Carrick took 60.59% of the vote and Republican Ruben McNeill Jr. took 39.41% of the vote.
In the contested House District 36 race, Democrat Brandon “Putuuqti” Kowalski won 33.79% of the vote. Republican Rebecca Schwanke took 20.53%. Cole Snodgress withdrew from the race after finishing in fourth place as the second Republican. James Fields moved up to take the fourth place spot on the General Election ballot.
Voter turnout across the Interior decreased since the 2022 Alaska Primary election. Turnout in 2022 varied from 19.01% in House District 32 to 36.53% in House District 35. In 2024, the lowest voter turnout was 11.43% in House District 32 and the highest voter turnout was 25.02% in House District 35.
Editor's Note: This article was updated to include the results in House District 34.
Contact Haley Lehman at 907-459-7575 or by email at hlehman@newsminer.com.
