Alaska's U.S. Senate race between Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola remains too close to call, one of a handful of House and Senate midterm contests across the country still without a declared winner.
The Alaska contest is razor-thin and was jolted by a last-minute development in the final stretch of the campaign, leaving the outcome unsettled as ballots continue to be counted. Neither candidate has secured a margin large enough to be projected the winner.
Alaska's ranked-choice voting system is a major reason the race is taking longer to resolve than a traditional plurality contest. Voters rank candidates in order of preference, and if no one clears 50% on the first pass, the lowest finisher is eliminated and that candidate's supporters' second choices are reallocated. That tabulation process adds days to the count, particularly in a race decided by a narrow margin.
Sullivan, first elected to the Senate in 2014, was seeking a third term. Peltola, who has served in the U.S. House, mounted a serious challenge in a state where Republicans have historically held an advantage in federal races but where Democrats have gained ground in recent cycles.
The Alaska Senate seat carries weight beyond the state's roughly 730,000 residents. Control of the Senate has hinged on a small number of competitive seats in recent elections, and a single upset can shift the balance of power and determine which party sets the chamber's agenda on spending, judicial confirmations and federal appointments.
Alaska is not the only race still outstanding. Several House contests and at least one other Senate race remain uncalled as election officials in close contests work through mail ballots, provisional ballots and, in Alaska's case, ranked-choice reallocations. Election administrators in those jurisdictions have said the additional days are a function of processing and verifying ballots, not irregularities.
State election officials have not announced a final date for certifying the Alaska results. Under the state's tabulation schedule, ranked-choice rounds are typically run about two weeks after Election Day, once mail ballots postmarked by the deadline have arrived and been verified.
Until those counts are finalized, the candidates' campaigns have not claimed victory, and the seat remains officially open.
