Alaska's at-large congressional district

Since becoming a U.S. state in 1959, Alaska has been entitled to one member in the United States House of Representatives. The representative is elected at-large, because the state has only one congressional district, encompassing its entire territory. By area, Alaska's congressional district is the largest congressional district in the United States and the third-largest electoral district represented by a single member in the world. It is exceeded by Yakutsk district in Russia, which is similar in size to India and is the largest, and Nunavut, which comprises a single electoral district in Canada.

Alaska's at-large congressional district
Representative	Mary Peltola D–Bethel
Area	665,384.04[1] sq mi (1,723,336.8 km2)
Distribution	65.7% urban[2] 34.3% rural
Population (2023)	733,406[3]
Median household income	$86,631[4]
Ethnicity	57.5% White 14.8% Native American 9.8% Two or more races 6.8% Hispanic 5.9% Asian 2.8% Black 1.7% Pacific Islander Americans 0.6% other
Cook PVI	R+8[5]

On August 31, 2022, Democrat Mary Peltola defeated Republican former governor Sarah Palin in the special election to replace Don Young, who died on March 18 of the same year and was the longest serving Republican in the history of the House and was the most notable person to represent the district. Peltola became the first Democrat elected to the House of Representatives from Alaska since 1972, and the first Alaska Native in history to be elected to the United States House of Representatives.

As of 2024, the state comprises the most Republican-leaning congressional district to be represented by a Democrat. It has a partisan lean of R+8.^[5]

History

The district was created when Alaska achieved statehood on January 3, 1959. Given the growth of population across the nation, Alaska is still entitled to only one seat in the House of Representatives.

Voter registration

Voter registration as of January 3, 2021[6]
Party		Total voters	Percentage
	Unaffiliated	338,931	56.52%
	Republican	149,173	24.87%
	Democratic	81,355	13.57%
	Alaskan Independence	19,109	3.19%
	Minor parties	11,136	1.85%
Total		599,704	100%

Recent statewide election results

Because Alaska has always had only one congressional district, these are the same as the presidential election results.

Year	Office	Results
1960	President	Richard Nixon 51% – John F. Kennedy 49%
1964	President	Lyndon B. Johnson 66% – Barry Goldwater 34%
1968	President	Richard Nixon 45% – Hubert Humphrey 43%
1972	President	Richard Nixon 58% – George McGovern 35%
1976	President	Gerald Ford 58% – Jimmy Carter 36%
1980	President	Ronald Reagan 54% – Jimmy Carter 26%
1984	President	Ronald Reagan 67% – Walter Mondale 30%
1988	President	George H. W. Bush 60% – Michael Dukakis 36%
1992	President	George H. W. Bush 39% – Bill Clinton 30%
1996	President	Bob Dole 51% – Bill Clinton 33%
2000	President	George W. Bush 59% – Al Gore 28%
2004	President	George W. Bush 61% – John Kerry 36%
2008	President	John McCain 59% – Barack Obama 38%
2012	President	Mitt Romney 55% – Barack Obama 41%
2016	President	Donald Trump 51% – Hillary Clinton 37%
2020	President	Donald Trump 53% – Joe Biden 43%

List of members representing the district

Representative (Residence)	Party	Term	Cong ress	Electoral history
District created January 3, 1959
Ralph Rivers (Fairbanks)	Democratic	January 3, 1959 – December 30, 1966	86th 87th 88th 89th	Elected in 1958. Re-elected in 1960. Re-elected in 1962. Re-elected in 1964. Lost re-election, then resigned early.
Vacant		December 30, 1966 – January 3, 1967	89th
Howard Pollock (Anchorage)	Republican	January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1971	90th 91st	Elected in 1966. Re-elected in 1968. Retired to run for Governor of Alaska.
Nick Begich (Anchorage)	Democratic	January 3, 1971 – December 29, 1972	92nd	Elected in 1970. Went missing October 16, 1972. Re-elected posthumously in 1972. Declared dead December 29, 1972.
Vacant		December 29, 1972 – March 6, 1973	92nd 93rd
Don Young (Fort Yukon)	Republican	March 6, 1973 – March 18, 2022	93rd 94th 95th 96th 97th 98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd 103rd 104th 105th 106th 107th 108th 109th 110th 111th 112th 113th 114th 115th 116th 117th	Elected to finish Begich's term. Re-elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1978. Re-elected in 1980. Re-elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Re-elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Re-elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Re-elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Died.
Vacant		March 18, 2022 – September 13, 2022	117th
Mary Peltola (Bethel)	Democratic	September 13, 2022 – present	117th 118th	Elected to finish Young's term. Re-elected in 2022.

Electoral history

1958 to 2010

Year		Republican				Democratic				Green				Libertarian				Others				Write-in[7]
		Candidate	Votes	Pct		Candidate	Votes	Pct		Candidate	Votes	Pct		Candidate	Votes	Pct		Candidate	Votes	Pct		Votes	Pct
1958		Henry A. Benson	20,699	42.5%		Ralph Rivers	27,948	57.5%
1960		R. L. Rettig	25,517	43.2%		Ralph Rivers (Incumbent)	33,546	56.8%
1962		Lowell Thomas Jr.	26,638	44%		Ralph Rivers (Incumbent)	33,953	56%
1964		Lowell Thomas Jr.	32,556	48.5%		Ralph Rivers (Incumbent)	34,590	51.5%
1966		Howard W. Pollock	34,040	51.6%		Ralph Rivers (Incumbent)	31,867	48.4%
1968		Howard W. Pollock (Incumbent)	43,577	54.2%		Nick Begich	36,785	45.8%
1970		Frank Murkowski	35,947	44.9%		Nick Begich	44,137	55.1%
1972		Don Young	41,750	43.8%		Nick Begich (Incumbent)	53,651	56.2%
1973		Don Young	35,044	51.4%		Emil Notti	33,123	48.6%
1974		Don Young (Incumbent)	51,641	53.8%		William L. Hensley	44,280	46.2%
1976		Don Young (Incumbent)	83,722	70.8%		Eben Hopson	34,194	28.9%														292	0.2%
1978		Don Young (Incumbent)	68,811	55.4%		Patrick Rodey	55,176	44.4%														200	0.2%
1980		Don Young (Incumbent)	114,089	73.8%		Kevin Parnell	39,922	25.8%														607	0.4%
1982		Don Young (Incumbent)	128,274	70.8%		Dave Carlson	52,011	28.7%														799	0.4%
1984		Don Young (Incumbent)	113,582	55%		Pegge Begich	86,052	41.7%										Betty Breck (I)	6,508	3.2%		295	0.1%
1986		Don Young (Incumbent)	101,799	56.5%		Pegge Begich	74,053	41.1%						Betty Breck	4,182	2.3%						243	0.1%
1988		Don Young (Incumbent)	120,595	62.5%		Peter Gruenstein	71,881	37.3%														479	0.2%
1990		Don Young (Incumbent)	99,003	51.7%		John S. Devens	91,677	47.8%														967	0.5%
1992		Don Young (Incumbent)	111,849	46.8%		John S. Devens	102,378	42.8%		Mike Milligan	9,529	4%						Michael States (AI)	15,049	6.3%		311	0.1%
1994		Don Young (Incumbent)	118,537	56.9%		Tony Smith	68,172	32.7%		Joni Whitmore	21,277	10.2%										254	0.1%
1996		Don Young (Incumbent)	138,834	59.4%		Georgianna Lincoln	85,114	36.4%		John J. G. Grames	4,513	1.9%						William J. Nemec II (AI)	5,017	2.1%		222	0.1%
1998		Don Young (Incumbent)	139,676	62.6%		Jim Duncan	77,232	34.6%		John J. G. Grames	5,923	2.7%										469	0.2%
2000		Don Young (Incumbent)	190,862	69.6%		Clifford Mark Greene	45,372	16.5%		Anna C. Young	22,440	8.2%		Leonard J. Karpinski	4,802	1.8%		Jim Dore (AI)	10,085	3.7%		832	0.3%
2002		Don Young (Incumbent)	169,685	74.5%		Clifford Mark Greene	39,357	17.3%		Russell deForest	14,435	6.3%		Rob Clift	3,797	1.7%						291	0.1%
2004		Don Young (Incumbent)	213,216	71.1%		Thomas M. Higgins	67,074	22.4%		Timothy A. Feller	11,434	3.8%		Alvin A. Anders	7,157	2.4%						1,115	0.4%
2006		Don Young (Incumbent)	132,743	56.6%		Diane E. Benson	93,879	40%		Eva Ince	1,819	0.8%		Alexander Crawford	4,029	1.7%		William Ratigan	1,615	0.7%		560	0.2%
2008		Don Young (Incumbent)	158,939	50.1%		Ethan Berkowitz	142,560	45%										Don Wright	14,274	4.5%		1,205	0.4%
2010		Don Young (Incumbent)	175,384	69%		Harry Crawford	77,606	30.5%														1,345	0.5%
Year		Republican				Democratic				Green				Libertarian				Others				Write-in

Source: "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Archived from the original on July 30, 2008. Retrieved August 8, 2008.

2012

2012 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Don Young (incumbent)	185,296	63.94	−5.02
	Democratic	Sharon Cissna	82,927	28.62	−1.89
	Libertarian	Jim McDermott	15,028	5.19	+5.19
	Independent	Ted Gianoutsos	5,589	1.93	+1.93
	Independent	Write-in votes	964	0.33	−0.20
	Republican hold		Swing
Turnout			289,804

2014

2014 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Don Young (incumbent)	142,260	50.95	−12.99
	Democratic	Forrest Dunbar	114,317	40.94	+12.32
	Libertarian	Jim McDermott	21,373	7.65	+2.46
	Independent	Write-in votes	1,269	0.45	+0.12
	Republican hold		Swing
Turnout			279,219

2016

2016 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Don Young (incumbent)	155,088	50.32	−0.63
	Democratic	Steve Lindbeck	111,019	36.02	−4.92
	Libertarian	Jim McDermott	31,770	10.31	+2.66
	Independent	Bernie Souphanavong	9,093	2.95	+2.95
	Independent	Write-in votes	1,228	0.40	−0.05
	Republican hold		Swing
Turnout			308,198

2018

2018 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Don Young (incumbent)	149,779	53.08	+2.76%
	Independent	Alyse S. Galvin[a]	131,199	46.50	+10.48%
	Write-in		1,188	0.42	+0.02%
Total votes			282,166	100	N/A

2020

2020 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Don Young (incumbent)	192,126	54.40	+1.32%
	Independent	Alyse S. Galvin[a]	159,856	45.26	−1.24%
	Write-in		1,183	0.34	−0.08%
Total votes			353,165	100	N/A

2022 special

2022 Alaska's at-large congressional district special election

Party		Candidate	Round 1			Round 2
			Votes	%	Transfer	Votes	%
	Democratic	Mary Peltola	74,807	39.66%	+16,399	91,206	51.47%
	Republican	Sarah Palin	58,328	30.93%	+27,659	85,987	48.53%
	Republican	Nick Begich III	52,504	27.84%	-52,504	Eliminated
	Write-in		2,971	1.58%	-2,971	Eliminated
Total votes			188,610	100.00%		177,193	94.29%
Inactive ballots			0	0.00%	+10,726	10,726	5.71%
	Democratic gain from Republican

2022

2022 Alaska's at-large congressional district election^[10]

Party		Candidate	Round 1			Round 2			Round 3
			Votes	%	Transfer	Votes	%	Transfer	Votes	%
	Democratic	Mary Peltola (incumbent)	128,329	48.68%	+1,038	129,433	49.20%	+7,460	136,893	54.94%
	Republican	Sarah Palin	67,732	25.74%	+1,064	69,242	26.32%	+43,013	112,255	45.06%
	Republican	Nick Begich III	61,431	23.34%	+1,988	64,392	24.48%	-64,392	Eliminated
	Libertarian	Chris Bye	4,560	1.73%	-4,560	Eliminated
	Write-in		1,096	0.42%	-1,096	Eliminated
Total votes			263,148	100.00%		263,067	100.00%		249,148	100.00%
Inactive ballots			2,193	0.83%	+906	3,097	1.16%	+14,765	17,016	5.55%
	Democratic hold

Notes

1. Also listed as having the Democratic nomination.

References

1. Census data 2010census.gov Archived October 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
2. "Congressional Districts". proximityone.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
3. Center for New Media & Promotion (CNMP), US Census Bureau. "My Congressional District". www.census.gov. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
4. Center for New Media & Promotion (CNMP), US Census Bureau. "My Congressional District". www.census.gov. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
5. "Introducing the 2022 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index". The Cook Political Report. June 8, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
6. "Alaska Voter Registration by Party/Precinct". Retrieved May 18, 2023.
7. Prior to the 1976 election, official election returns released by the State of Alaska were typewritten rather than computer generated, and write-in votes were not included in published vote totals
8. Johnson, Cheryl L. (February 28, 2019). "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 6, 2018". Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
9. "State of Alaska 2020 General Election" (PDF). Alaska Division of Elections. November 3, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
10. "RCV Detailed Report | General Election | State of Alaska" (PDF). Alaska Division of Elections. November 23, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

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