The November 8th General Election results have officially been certified by the Alaska Division of Elections. Official results were announced on December 1st after a canvassing by the Alaska State Review Board.
321,271 ballots were counted in the 2016 General Election, making for a 60.77% voter turnout this year.
The Division of Elections reports a record number of early, absentee, and questioned ballots this year – 123,000 versus 90,000 in 2014. Division Director Josie Bahnke estimates 32% of Alaskans utilized alternate methods to get their vote in this year, and she expects that trend to continue into the future.
On the local level, nearly eleven-thousand people are registered to vote in District 39, with roughly half turning up at the polls this year. Certified results in District 39 for the presidential race show Hillary Clinton receiving 3,137 votes over Donald Trump, who took 1,402. In the House and Senate races, Lisa Murkowski and Don Young took District 39. Murkowski had 3,260 votes, more than double the total of opponent Joe Miller at 1,244. Young received 3,190 votes, Steve Lindbeck 1,887. Senator Donny Olson and Representative Neal Foster both ran unopposed. 176 write-ins went against Olson, while 164 write-ins opposed Foster.
In a release, Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott thanked Division of Election employees for their work counting an estimated 100,000 early and absentee ballots on election night and in the following required fifteen days after the election.
Bahnke also expressed her gratitude for the collaborative efforts at the state, regional and local levels.
