Peltola’s lead shrinks slightly as small number of ballots added to results Wednesday

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Democrat’s campaign states ballots are from Republican-friendly Mat-Su area; margin now slightly below total for Dan J. Sullivan

By Mark Sabbatini

Juneau Independent

Republican U.S. Sen. Dan S. Sullivan narrowed the gap slightly — to 1.6% rather than 1.74% — and the campaign for Democratic challenger Mary Peltola expressed confidence in its lead as a small number of additional ballots were added to unofficial results Wednesday.

Peltola has 48.73% to Sullivan’s 47.13% in 251,088 ballots tallied as of 5:47 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Alaska Division of Elections. The Associated Press estimates that is 86% of ballots cast, up from 84% on Tuesday.

Peltola’s campaign, in a statement Wednesday, asserted the ballots in the updated count are "largely from the Mat-Su area," one of the regions of the state where Republican support is strongest. Sullivan’s campaign on Wednesday, before the updated results were released, stated "With tens of thousands of ballots still to be counted, there's a long way to go before every Alaskan's voice is heard."

The updated gap is now smaller than the total votes for retired Petersburg teacher Dan J. Sullivan, who has 1.64% in the unofficial count. A U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit ordered by President Donald Trump is seeking to halt certification of the race if Peltola’s victory margin is smaller than the votes received by the Petersburg resident. However, the election is scheduled to be certified well before any further action in case, which is before a federal appeals court after being dismissed by a federal judge in Anchorage.

Results from a significant number of additional ballots are expected to be released Friday, the deadline for ballots postmarked by Election Day and mailed within the U.S. The deadline for international ballots is Nov. 18, when ranked choice tallies for candidate races where nobody has a majority will be conducted.

• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.