Politics

Sarah Palin Leads Primary Opponents In First Round Of Alaska Primary

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin speaks during a Town Hall at the Racine Civic Centre Memorial Hall April 2, 2016. REUTERS/Kamil Krzaczynski

REUTERS/Kamil Krzaczynski

Kellen McGovern Jones Contributor
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Sarah Palin earned a 10-point victory in a special primary for Alaska’s sole congressional seat Saturday.

The special election is the first round in a two-part election series that is set to fill the vacancy left by the death of former Congressman Don Young.

Young, 88, lost consciousness and passed away suddenly earlier in the year aboard a commercial flight from L.A. to Seattle.

Shortly after Young’s death, Palin expressed interest in running for his seat. About ten days later, Palin officially announced her candidacy. Former President Donald Trump, who Palin supported in 2016, returned the favor by swiftly endorsing Palin.

Palin ran against an eclectic, forty-eight-person assortment of primary opponents, which included everything from Nick Begich, the co-chair for Young’s 2020 reelection campaign, to St. Nick. With roughly 72% of votes reported as of Sunday night, NBC and others have called the race for Palin at 29.8%, Begich at 19.3%, Al Gross at 12.5%, and Mary Petola at 7.5%.

While several states have experimented with different forms of elections in recent years, Alaska’s special election primary is the first top-four congressional primary in U.S. history.

Palin’s official Twitter account put out a message that celebrated her victory. “I’m looking forward to the special general election so we can highlight our ideas for fixing this country by responsibly developing Alaska’s God-given natural resources, getting runaway government spending under control, protecting human life, protecting the right to keep and bear arms, and restoring respect for individual liberty and the Constitution,” Palin wrote.

Students for Trump, a Pro-Trump student organization, tweeted their congratulations to Palin.

Palin will face off against Begich, Gross, and Petola again in the special general election, which will be held Aug. 16, 2022.