Republican Congressman Nick Begich finished in first place in Tuesday’s primary election, according to preliminary results.
With about half of Alaska’s precincts reporting, Begich had about 48% of the vote.
The incumbent congressman was not available for an interview Tuesday. A campaign spokesman did not respond to queries.
Begich is a Republican in an extended family of prominent Democrats. Tom Begich, a candidate for governor who also made it through to November’s general election, is his uncle. Another uncle, Mark Begich, was a U.S. Senator for one term, ending in 2015.
Bill Hill, a fisherman and retired school administrator, has also secured a spot on the November ballot, taking about 30% of the early vote.
The apparent third-place finisher, Democrat Matt Schultz, announced in mid-July that he was suspending his campaign, citing insufficient support from “too many institutions within the Democratic Party ecosystem.”
Many Alaska Democrats and progressives were torn between Schultz and Hill. Despite ending his campaign, Schultz still took about 8% of primary votes.
Hill had raised $1.3 million by the end of July, while Begich had raised $5.4 million.
The other two slots on the ballot will go to lesser-known candidates who haven’t reported any fundraising.
Among them could be Democrat Eric Hafner. He is a frequent candidate and an inmate at a federal prison in New York. Someone, and it’s not clear who, sent text messages Friday to boost Hafner, the Anchorage Daily News reports. Hafner was in fourth place late Tuesday with a little less than 4% of the vote.
The National Republican Congressional Committee boosted his candidacy in the 2024 U.S. House race as it tried to give Begich an advantage, the newspaper reported at the time.
