Trump Urges Alaskans to Repeal Ranked-Choice Voting, Rallies Behind Sullivan
President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday, October 8, urging Alaskans to repeal ranked-choice voting in November and criticizing the state's four-way governor's race featuring "three Republicans running against one Democrat."
"How stupid are we to do this?" Trump asked in the post, taking aim at Alaska's nonpartisan top-four primary and ranked-choice general election system, which he called a corrupt system he hopes voters will scrap. In the same post, he endorsed Sen. Dan S. Sullivan and Rep. Nick Begich, calling the pair "a fantastic team," and urged Alaskans to cast early ballots when voting opens on October 19.
The message came just days before Trump's planned trip to Alaska to campaign for Sullivan, reportedly including a rally in Wasilla. Sullivan faces a strong challenge from Democrat Mary Peltola, and holding the seat is critical to Republicans' bid to keep control of the U.S. Senate in the midterms. Election forecaster Decision Desk HQ's model favored Peltola with a 63% win probability as of October 8, and a New York Times poll concluded October 1 placed her ahead by 7 points. Peltola became the first Alaska Native elected to Congress in 2022, lost her House seat to Begich in 2024, and launched her Senate bid in January 2026.
Alaska's ranked-choice system was adopted by voters in 2020: the top four primary finishers advance to the general election, and if no candidate wins a majority of first-choice votes, the lowest finisher is eliminated and second-choice votes are redistributed until someone surpasses 50%. A 2024 effort to repeal the system failed by just 737 votes. On November 3, voters will decide its fate again; if approved, the initiative would also eliminate the state's open primaries and tougher campaign finance disclosure rules.
In the governor's race, Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins faces Republicans Dave Bronson, Treg Taylor and Bernadette Wilson, competing to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy. Notably, Trump did not endorse a gubernatorial candidate in his post.
The Senate race is also heating up off the ballot. The conservative watchdog American Accountability Foundation submitted a 114-page referral to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Alaska this week, asking the Justice Department to investigate possible campaign finance violations by groups aligned against the incumbent. At the center is Republican candidate Dan J. Sullivan, who shares the incumbent's name; Republicans accuse him of running to confuse voters and siphon support, a charge he denies.
(Source: compiled reports)
Related: America's Electoral System (4): The Midterms: What Is on the Ballot on November 3, 2026
Related: Phoenix Mails Early Ballots October 7 for City Council Election in Districts 2, 4, 6 and 8
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: James Brooks 摄，CC BY 2.0（Wikimedia Commons）
