Anchorage Democrats win two state House seats

Independent and Democratic lawmakers are leading in 23 of the 40 seats in the Alaska House of Representatives, according to preliminary election results updated early Wednesday morning. This represents a gain from the 19 seats the coalition held in the 2024 elections. The increase suggests that the bipartisan majority, which has controlled the chamber since 2024, is likely to expand even if no Republicans join the group.

The shift is particularly evident in Anchorage, where Democrats claimed two previously Republican districts. Former state Rep. Cliff Groh defeated Republican Dan Sager in the House district covering Government Hill and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. Groh previously held the seat but lost to Sager in 2024. The district includes a large military population that often does not vote in midterms, leading to frequent changes in control. In a separate Anchorage race, Democrat Denny Wells defeated incumbent Republican Rep. Mia Costello in House District 15. With all six precincts reporting, Wells held 52.4% of the vote in the district covering Campbell Lake and Jewel Lake.

Other races remain tight as thousands of early and absentee ballots are still being counted. In House District 34, which covers northern Fairbanks, independent candidate Joy Beth Cottle leads Republican Harmony Tomaszewski by 43 votes out of 6,601 counted. Cottle is backed by Democrats. The district voted for President Donald Trump in 2024, but the previous representative, Frank Tomaszewski, ran for the Senate instead of seeking re-election.

Several races in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and Southwest Alaska are headed to ranked-choice runoffs. In House District 28, incumbent Republican Rep. Elexie Moore trails Republican Stephen Wright, with Democratic votes likely to determine the outcome. In House District 37, Speaker Bryce Edgmon vacated his seat to run for Senate, leaving a four-way race that remains unresolved as of Wednesday morning. Democratic candidate Evelynn Trefon leads with 36.4% of the vote.

In the state Senate, preliminary results indicate that the existing 14-member coalition will likely continue. All four incumbent Anchorage senators won re-election by wide margins Tuesday night. Republican Sen. Cathy Giessel and Democrats Elvi Gray-Jackson, Löki Tobin, and Bill Wielechowski will return to the Capitol in January. Tobin and Wielechowski faced no opponents. In Southeast Alaska, no changes occurred in the legislative contingent, with incumbents in Sitka, Juneau, and Ketchikan securing their seats.

The counting process continues across the state. In House District 24, Republican Ken McCarty leads fellow Republican Gina Wall by just 16 votes out of 6,729 cast. The margin may shift as more absentee ballots are processed. Meanwhile, in House District 23, incumbent Republican Rep. Jamie Allard leads a field of four candidates and is projected to face a ranked-choice runoff. These final tallies will determine the exact size of the majority coalition for the new legislative session.

The 20-person state Senate remains under the control of a coalition that has held power for two years. Coalition-minded senators appear to be holding their seats or winning re-election. The final seat counts will be confirmed once all early and absentee ballots are tallied and any necessary ranked-choice runoffs are completed. The next legislative session is scheduled to begin in January.