Just hundreds of votes separate Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola in the race for U.S. Senate in Alaska as of the latest tally, but more ballots are still being counted.
It's one of several tight races
yet to be called two days after Election Day, which generated record-breaking momentum for Democrats to yank back control of Congress. All eyes are on states including Alaska and Mississippi to see just how wide of a majority Democrats will have in the Senate.The Alaska contest was also the subject of national attention even before Nov. 3, as controversy swirled over two "Dan Sullivans" on the ballot. After Republican concerns that a second Dan Sullivan was planted to pull away votes from the incumbent, the Justice Department
sent letters to groups informing them of an investigation into the issue.
Peltola, a former U.S. representative, holds a razor-thin lead over Sullivan with 75% of votes counted as of the Associated Press' latest tally. With 48.2% of the vote for Peltola and 47.9% for Sullivan, the candidates are separated by some 600 ballots.
Here's a look at the live results.
See live results of Alaska US Senate election
Why Alaska US Senate election could take a while to call
Alaska and Mississippi are two battleground states where Senate races remain too close to call two days after elections. Experts say we may not know the final result for days or even weeks.
The specific nature of Alaska's voting system, where many ballots come in from remote precincts, makes getting results in the state take longer in close races. The state also has a significant population of military voters, whose ballots can arrive up to 15 days after Election Day, as long as they were postmarked by Election Day.
Election officials will have to wait "for some time" for votes to come in from remote areas, David Becker, a former DOJ voting rights lawyer who runs the Center for Election Innovation & Research, said on a call with reporters Nov. 4.
If no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, Alaska's ranked-choice voting system comes into play, which could mean further delays. Under state law, the ranked-choice tally wouldn't start until Nov. 18.
"So it might be the second half of November where we get a really good sense of that," Becker said.
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. Keep up with her on Instagram @bymelinakhan and TikTok @melina.khan2.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Live results: Alaska Senate election in bitterly tight race
