Don’t forget to check your voter registration status and update your information for the upcoming Alaska special general election and primary on Aug. 16. The deadline to register to vote is July 17. The ballot won’t automatically be mailed to your address, you need to request for a ballot to be mailed before Aug. 6. Click here to find your local polling place if you plan on voting in person: https://myvoterinformation.alaska.gov/.
June 11 was a special primary, necessary to fill the remainder of Congressman Young's term because of his passing in service.
August 16 is the regularly scheduled Statewide Primary for all offices open to challenge, this Pick-1 process will be on the front of the ballot. Governor, Lt. Governor, U.S. Senate, Congress, and almost all Senate and House Legislative Districts are to be considered. Primaries are now open to all eligible candidates, and remains a "Pick 1" process. The top four vote getters will move on to the Mid-Term election on November 8.
August 16 is ALSO the Special Election, with that race on the back of the ballot: There the top 3 primary winners of the June 11 race, Sarah Palin, Nick Begich, and Mary Peltola (Al Gross withdrew from the campaign) can be ranked in order of preference. If one candidate does not hit a 50% +1 threshold outright, the candidate with the least votes will be knocked out, and a voter's second choice will be distributed to the remaining candidates (that is if you bothered to rank, and not just vote for your favorite.) RCV is an instant run-off process that eliminates the need to schedule another election in close races. Once a candidate reaches more than half the votes (plus one,) they will be the winning candidate to serve in office.
The Alaska Division of Elections has released sample ballots for the August 16 Election. You can find them here https://www.elections.alaska.gov/.../sampleballots...
Pick your district to view the ballot you'll be working with at the polls - or you can request to vote by mail (absentee) here: https://absenteeballotapplication.alaska.gov/
If you are over 18 and receive a PFD, or have a Drivers License or State ID, you should already be registered to vote, but you can check your status here: https://voterregistration.alaska.gov/
And make sure your address is up to date too.
There is value to ranking the candidates in order of preference, filling in a single oval per column, so that you still have a voice in the process if your choice gets knocked out in the first round of counting. You've made the effort as an active citizen to show up and vote, make it count all the way!
Original source can be found here.
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