Alaska’s voter registration deadline is Sunday for the November election

The deadline for Alaskans to register to vote for the general election is Sunday, Oct. 6.

Alaska Division of Elections regional offices will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday for voters to register. Alaskans also can head online to register to vote or to update their registration. Another webpage allows Alaskans to check if their registration details are up to date.

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

Early and absentee voting

Early voting starts on Oct. 21. Voting locations will be open across Alaska leading up to Election Day on Nov. 5.

Ballots will not sent be sent automatically by mail. For municipal elections, Juneau and Anchorage residents automatically receive by-mail ballots — but that doesn’t occur for federal and state elections.

To apply for a by-mail ballot, Alaskans can follow instructions posted online on the Division of Elections’ website. Alaskans can vote by mail or absentee for any reason.

Absentee ballots must by postmarked on or before Election Day to be counted. The deadline to apply for a by-mail ballot is Oct. 26.

The Division of Elections started sending absentee ballots in September to members of the military and Alaskans living overseas. According to the division, 289 of those ballots have been returned to be counted as of Thursday.

What’s on the ballot?

On the general election ballot will be eight presidential and vice presidential tickets, alongside four candidates running for Alaska’s sole seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

There are 50 state legislative races, including all 40 seats in the state House and 10 of 20 state Senate seats. Nineteen state judges are also up for retention votes.

There will be two initiatives on the ballot. One measure would boost 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 for the first time in a presidential election. Voters can rank up to four candidates for the U.S. House race and in contests for the state House and Senate.

Candidates for president and vice president do not participate in Alaska’s top-four primary election system, meaning voters will be able to rank up to eight presidential tickets.

When to expect results

First results are expected after 9 p.m. on the night of the Nov. 5 election.

Results will continue to be released as by-mail ballots are counted. Absentee ballots can arrive from overseas and be counted 15 days after the election.

Under Alaska’s ranked choice voting system, a candidate will win outright if they get more than 50% of first-choice votes. If no candidate receives a majority, the ranked choice voting tabulation process will occur until there is a clear winner.

Only voters’ first-choice results will be counted in the 15 days after the election. Per Alaska regulations, the ranked choice tabulation will occur on Nov. 20. That should give a clear indication of the winner in each race.

However, results will remain unofficial until they are certified. The Division of Elections’ target date to certify general election results is Nov. 30.