By SUZANNE DOWNING
Nov. 13, 2026 – Mary Peltola’s lead over US Sen. Dan Sullivan widened to 10,412 votes Friday as Alaska released another substantial batch of ballots, while Republican Rep. Sarah Vance’s advantage in House District 6 dwindled to just 13 votes.
Peltola reached a displayed 50.0% on the state’s candidate dashboard. But there is a distinction: The Division of Elections’ detailed summary report, which includes write-in votes, puts her at 49.84%.
The latest unofficial report, timestamped 7:14 pm Nov. 13, shows 279,334 ballots counted statewide, an increase of 22,511 from Thursday’s report.
Peltola has 138,240 votes to Sullivan’s 127,828. Republican Gerald Heikes has 5,885, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. has 4,560, and write-ins account for another 855.
Compared with Thursday’s report, Peltola added 13,083 votes while Sullivan added 8,471. Her lead grew by 4,612 votes, from 5,800 to 10,412.
Among the four named candidates, Peltola’s share is approximately 49.996%, which rounds to the dashboard’s 50.0%. With write-ins included, she remains below half of the reported Senate votes.
Begich leads, but his percentage slips
Republican Congressman Nick Begich continues to lead the four-candidate House race, with 132,053 votes, or 47.83% in the detailed report.
Bill Hill has 115,220 votes, or 41.73%, followed by Democrat Eric Hafner with 21,187 and Libertarian Jim McDermott with 7,228. Write-ins total 420.
Begich’s lead stands at 16,833 votes, down from 18,781 Thursday. Hill gained 10,760 votes in the update, compared with Begich’s 8,812.
Begich remains below a first-choice majority, leaving lower-ranked preferences consequential to the eventual outcome if that remains the case when counting is complete.
Kreiss-Tomkins strengthens his majority
Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and running mate Zac Johnson increased their lead in the governor’s race, reaching 139,293 votes and 50.81% when write-ins are included.
The candidate dashboard shows the ticket at 51.0%.
Wilson/Shower has 77,110 votes, or 28.13%; Bronson/Church has 37,252, shrinking to 13.59%; and Taylor/English has 19,709, or 7.19%.
Kreiss-Tomkins’ share rose from 50.05% in Thursday’s detailed report. All three Republican tickets slipped in percentage terms despite adding votes.
Vance’s race tightens sharply
The most dramatic legislative development is in House District 6, where Vance leads Brent Johnson 4,826 to 4,813.
That is a margin of just 13 votes, down from 164 Thursday.
Johnson gained 781 votes in the update, while Vance gained 630. Vance holds 50.01% of the reported vote, with 11 write-ins also listed. She is still winning.
Other narrow margins and ranking questions remain:
- House District 24: Ken McCarty leads Gina Wall by 43 votes, 3,570 to 3,527. His advantage narrowed from 52 votes Thursday. Both are Republicans.
- Senate District M: Cathy Tilton leads Ryan Berry by 79 votes, 5,236 to 5,157. Democrat Patricia Chesbro has 4,603 and Republican Zane Vrvilo has 903. Tilton’s first-choice lead is not a final ranked-choice result.
- House District 29: Garret Nelson leads Steve Menard by just 22 votes, 2,853 to 2,831. Kimberly Slone has 1,700 and Jessica Kusner-Kalarchik has 1,038. With neither leading Republican near a majority, transfers could determine the winner.
- House District 11: Julie Coulombe leads Danni Hall by 155 votes, 4,229 to 4,074. Her margin narrowed from 245.
- House District 25: DeLena Johnson leads with 2,963 votes, but Michael Bowles at 2,710 and Steven Merritt at 2,692 are separated by only 18 votes.
- House District 23: Jamie Allard leads with 3,080 votes, followed by Jim Arlington at 2,332, Ruby Jones at 2,140, and Lee Hammermeister at 570. These are first-choice totals.
The report lists all 401 precincts as reporting, but not every ballot counted.
5 thoughts on “Peltola hits 49.84% on election results page; Vance’s lead shrinks to 13 votes”
Sullivan needs to ask himself, and consult with his advisors: “What did we do wrong??” We worked hard in DC, brought much back to Alaska, but were rejected by the voters. And to make matters worse, we were beaten by an inferior candidate. What were the causes of our defeat?”
These victories are by the narrowest of margins. What does this actually mean about Alaska?
It means that Alaska is purple. And has been for a very long time. Independents are a huge voting bloc. No party voters and the Native Vote provide a pathway to victory that transcends party label. Ted Stevens and Don Young knew how to perform as fusion candidate. Lisa Murkowski learned the hard way in 2010 that you need to build your own base, rather than just coast on the party label. She adapted to her primary loss quickly but even more importantly had a ride or die team (not beholden to the party) to carry her forward. In 2016 and 2022 she used the lessons of 2010 to her advantage. But everyone of her wins where by a nose not a mile. It is hard work being purple and purple candidates are second guessed in real time throughout their campaigns. I submit that taking the risk returns greater reward. My not so humble opinion.
Wlmleitch – I agree with you but have to add– to an unengaged voter, I wouldn’t call Peltola an inferior candidate. She comes across much more positively on camera. She has more charisma. She had a stronger, faster campaign team. Is she a stronger candidate? Not to anyone who is using their brain, but it’s surprising how many people vote for the person who they would prefer to have over for dinner not the one who should fill the seat in Congress. And it wasn’t just Peltola that beat Sullivan. It was Peltola, Decoy Dan and Heikes.
Sen Dan is a good man, strong work ethic, well prepared, a good partner to Sen Murkowski, and a good boss to his highly accomplished staff. Let’s give him the space and the grace to absorb and process the results and to speak to the legacy he has left if Mary ends up the victor. If this comes to be there will be more than enough opportunity to second guess. But not this weekend, please. And no circular firing squads ever.