The voter registration deadline in Alaska is Sunday for the November election

The deadline for Alaska residents to register for the general election is Sunday, October 6th.

The Alaska Division of Elections regional offices are open for voter registration on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Alaska residents can also register online to vote or update their registration. Another website allows Alaska residents to check whether their registration information is current.

Alaska law allows voters to register on Election Day, but only to cast a vote for president and vice president.

Early and postal voting

Early voting begins October 21st. Polls will be open across Alaska through Election Day on November 5th.

Ballots are not automatically sent by mail. Juneau and Anchorage residents automatically receive ballots in the mail for local elections, but this is not the case for federal and state elections.

To request an absentee ballot, Alaska residents can follow the instructions posted online on the Division of Elections website. Alaskans can vote by mail or absentee ballot for any reason.

Mail-in ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day to be counted. The deadline for requesting a postal vote is October 26th.

The elections department began sending mail-in ballots to military members and Alaska residents living abroad in September. According to the department, 289 of those ballots had been returned for counting as of Thursday.

What’s on the ballot?

There are eight presidential and vice presidential candidates on the general election ballot, as well as four candidates running for Alaska’s only seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

There are 50 state legislative elections, including all 40 state House of Representatives seats and 10 of 20 state Senate seats. Nineteen state judges are also in favor of a retention vote.

There are two initiatives on the ballot. One measure would increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour over three years and guarantee sick leave for Alaska workers. Another measure would repeal Alaska’s current system of ranked-choice voting and open primaries.

This year, Alaskans will use ranked-choice voting in a presidential election for the first time. Voters can nominate up to four candidates in the U.S. House race and in state House and Senate contests.

Candidates for president and vice president do not participate in Alaska’s top-four primary system, meaning voters can place up to eight presidential candidates.

When can results be expected?

The first results are expected after 9 p.m. on the evening of the election on November 5th.

Results will continue to be released as mail-in ballots are counted. Postal ballots can arrive from abroad and be counted 15 days after the election.

Under Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system, a candidate wins outright if they receive more than 50% of the first-choice votes. If no candidate receives a majority, the voting process will be ranked-choice until a clear winner is determined.

In the 15 days after the election, only voters’ first-choice results will be counted. Per Alaska regulations, ranked selection will be made on November 20th. This should give a clear indication of the winner in each race.

However, the results remain unofficial until certification. The elections department’s target date for certifying the general election results is November 30.