The first two votes in Alaska’s Aug. 18 primary election have already been cast.
According to records published by the Alaska Division of Elections, two voters — one in South Carolina and another in Hawaii — returned their absentee ballots on July 17.
Thousands more voters will cast their ballots in the coming weeks. Absentee ballots were mailed to overseas and military voters starting July 2, and absentee ballots will start going out to the general public on Friday, July 24.
Early in-person voting starts Aug. 3.
In the primary, voters will pick one candidate for each office. The top four vote-getters for each race, regardless of party, will advance to the general election on Nov. 3.
If there are four or fewer candidates running for a particular office, all candidates will advance to the general election.
Incumbent Sitka Sen. Bert Stedman is running unopposed for another term in the state Senate to represent central and southern Southeast, which includes Wrangell.
State Rep. Jeremy Bynum is running for reelection to the state House, with Grant EchoHawk his only opponent for the seat that represents Ketchikan and Wrangell.
There are 16 candidates for U.S. Senate and 15 names on the ballot for U.S. House, with incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan and incumbent U.S. Rep. Nick Begich drawing multiple opponents who will battle in the primary to advance to the general election.
There are 17 people running for governor, each running on a combined ticket with a lieutenant governor candidate. Listed alphabetically, by the gubernatorial candidate’s last name:
Registration for the primary election has closed, but Alaskans may register for the general election until Oct. 4. Residents can check their voter registration at myvoterportal.alaska.gov.
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