Nov. 24 (UPI) — Rep. Mary Peltola, the first native Alaskan to serve in Congress, has won re-election, beating former state governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin for The Last Frontier’s sole House seat.
According to results released Wednesday by the Alaska Division of Elections, Peltola garnered nearly 55% of the vote to Palin’s 45% in the third round of ranked choice voting in the mid-term elections that were held on Nov. 8.
Peltola, a Democrat, became the first native Alaskan and first woman to represent her state in Congress when in late August she first beat Palin in a special election held to fill the seat left vacant following the March death of Republican Rep. Don Young.
Before supporters in downtown Anchorage, she said her election on Wednesday shows that Alaskans “are ready for an Alaskan to represent them who isn’t spouting [the] canned messages that we hear nationwide.”
“I think it shows that Alaskans wholeheartedly embrace nonpartisanship and embrace working together and tackling issues that Alaskans face,” she said, Alaska Public Radio reported.
Palin, who has for days since the election used her social media accounts to rail against ranked-choice voting, has yet to concede.
Nick Begich, a Republican who finished third in the race, issued a statement Wednesday offering Peltola congratulations.
“My message to Alaskans is to continue to be involved and engaged,” he said. “We have a government that is of the people, by the people and for the people; and as such it requires the active participation of citizens, not simply to vote, but to debate, to discuss, to be informed and to work to create the future we would all like to see.”
Peltola, who will now serve a two-year term in Congress, won the election with the endorsement of Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who also won her race on Wednesday.
