Ahead of Alaska’s Aug. 20 primary election, incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola continues to hold a fundraising advantage against her 11 competitors, new filings with the Federal Elections Commission show.
As of July 31, Peltola’s campaign had $2.8 million in cash on hand, compared to $317,617 held by Republican Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom and $172,548 held by fellow Republican challenger Nick Begich.
No other candidate reported holding any cash on hand.
Under Alaska’s election system, the four top vote-getters in the August primary — regardless of party — advance to the general election in November.
In the November election, if one candidate has more than half the votes, they win on the first count. If no one has more than half the votes, ranked choice voting is used to determine the winner.
In 2022, Peltola twice defeated Begich, former Republican Gov. Sarah Palin and all other competitors.
This year, Begich has pledged to withdraw from the election if he finishes behind Dahlstrom in the primary, which he has said is aimed at consolidating support behind one Republican. Dahlstrom has not made a similar pledge, nor have other candidates, who would replace any withdrawn candidate.
Fundraising success is strongly correlated with electoral victory.
In 2022, almost 94% of U.S. House candidates who spent the most money on their race went on to win the election, according to statistics kept by the Center for Responsive Politics.
In this election cycle, Peltola’s campaign has reported raising more than $7.5 million. Begich’s campaign has raised almost $983,000, and Dahlstrom’s campaign has raised over $912,000.
Dahlstrom has secured the endorsement of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, but local Republican Party officials have generally endorsed Begich. The state party has thus far declined to pick a preferred candidate.
• James Brooks is a longtime Alaska reporter, having previously worked at the Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire, Kodiak Mirror and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. This article originally appeared online at alaskabeacon.com. Alaska Beacon, an affiliate of States Newsroom, is an independent, nonpartisan news organization focused on connecting Alaskans to their state government.
