Palin loses Alaska special election, will run again

Sarah Palin, previously a Republican vice presidential candidate and a governor of Alaska, lost a special election bid Wednesday to represent the state’s only congressional district following the death of Don Young, who served for 49 years. In the final tally, Democratic candidate Mary Peltola pulled ahead in an upset victory, ending the night with 51.5 percent of the vote compared to Palin’s 48.5 percent. Peltola will serve out the remainder of Young’s term until the state’s congressional election in November. In order to hang on to her seat and represent the state for the next two-year term, she will have to survive one more statewide election.

What’s next for Palin? She made it clear she intends to run against Peltola in the fall. Throughout the race, she critiqued the state’s newly implemented ranked voting system. She encouraged voters to familiarize themselves with the system and told outlets she had full confidence that Republican voters would rally in November.

Dig Deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta’s evaluation of the likelihood of a “red wave” in the fall congressional elections.