Democratic candidate Mary Peltola has claimed a “pending victory” in Alaska’s closely watched Senate contest against Trump-backed Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan.
The race has drawn unusual international attention after Democrats were accused of recruiting a “decoy” candidate who shares the Republican nominee’s name, potentially confusing voters and improving Peltola’s chances.
Although the nation’s final undecided Senate race has not yet been officially called, the latest ballot update has significantly widened Peltola’s once-narrow advantage over Sullivan.
The Associated Press has counted 96 percent of the ballots, with Peltola leading by more than 10,000 votes. She is now positioned to flip the ninth Senate seat in a midterm election that produced a sweeping Democratic takeover of Congress.
After the update was published at 11.59pm on Friday, Peltola expressed confidence on social media, describing her victory as pending and saying there was “no mathematical path for Sullivan to win this race.”
“When the remaining votes are counted, Mary will decisively be elected as Alaska’s next United States Senator,” she added.
Sullivan has not posted publicly since November 4. Donald Trump, however, claimed more than a week ago that Sullivan had won, even though roughly 25 percent of the ballots remained uncounted at the time.
The former president wrote last Saturday: “The Alaska Race is OVER” and “Dan Sullivan WON, BY A LOT!”
Democratic nominee Mary Peltola has declared victory over Republican Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s closely contested Senate race, with the AP reporting that 96 percent of ballots have been processed
Trump-backed Republican incumbent Sullivan has not posted publicly since November 4, while Donald Trump claimed he had won despite 25 percent of ballots still being outstanding
Trump repeated that claim earlier this week, arguing that votes cast for “Fake Dan Sullivan” should be awarded to the Republican nominee and describing the contest as a “rigged election.”
No official winner has been announced, and both candidates remain below the 50 percent threshold. Peltola currently has 49.8 percent of the vote, compared with approximately 46.1 percent for Sullivan.
Alaskans may not learn who will represent them in the Senate until the end of the month.
The state’s deadline for completing the count of outstanding absentee, early, mail-in and provisional ballots is November 18.
If no candidate secures an outright majority by then, Alaska’s distinctive ranked-choice voting process will be used.
Under the system, a candidate who receives more than half of all first-choice votes wins immediately, without requiring further ranked-choice tabulation.
If no contender exceeds 50 percent, the candidate with the fewest first-choice votes is eliminated.
Ballots that listed the eliminated candidate as the first choice are then redistributed to the next-ranked candidate in the next round.
The unaffiliated “decoy” candidate named Dan Sullivan has received more than 4,500 votes so far.
Despite Trump’s claims that his preferred candidate won, Peltola is currently on course to take the Senate race
A second Dan Sullivan also appears on Alaska’s ballot and has been alleged to be a Democratic recruit intended to confuse voters
The second Sullivan’s share of the vote now appears less decisive than it did immediately after Election Day, when Peltola and the Republican nominee were separated by only a narrow margin.
Conservatives nevertheless argue that his candidacy drew crucial votes away from the incumbent and could ultimately deliver the race to Peltola.
A bombshell report alleged that Peltola’s campaign had recruited the namesake candidate in the week before Election Day. Since then, Dan Sullivan 2.0 has reportedly left his hometown and has not been seen.
The political doppelganger disappeared from Petersburg, the small fishing town where he lives, in late October.
An accelerated FBI criminal investigation into the alleged “decoy” scandal is unfolding at the same time, potentially adding another dramatic chapter to the election and casting further scrutiny on Alaska’s political system.
