How to Vote in Alaska's 2024 Elections

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• Deadline to register to vote: Sunday, Oct. 6 
• Deadline to request by-mail absentee ballot: Saturday, Oct. 26
• Deadline to request absentee ballot by electronic transmission: Monday, Nov. 4
• Election Day: Tuesday, Nov. 5

• Voter registration: The deadline to register is Sunday, Oct. 6. Check your registration status using the state’s voter information tool.

• Absentee voting: Registered voters can vote absentee in Alaska. 

• Early voting: Registered voters can vote early in Alaska. Absentee in-person and early voting locations open Monday, Oct. 21. Find locations in your area on the Division of Elections website.

• Voting at the polls: Poll hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Find your polling place with the Division of Election office’s online tool.

Changes may impact how you vote in the 2024 general election:

• Alaska implemented ranked-choice voting in 2022.

• An interim redistricting plan in 2022 changed some boundaries of state legislative districts. Last year the Alaska Redistricting Board adopted the 2022 plan as the final plan, which will remain in effect until 2032.

Note: You are automatically registered to vote when you apply for a Permanent Fund Dividend, unless you opt out.

The deadline to register before Election Day is Sunday, Oct. 6. You can register:

• Online: Use the state’s online voter registration system to register or update your registration. You’ll need a current Alaska driver’s license or state ID card, and the information must match your Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) record.

• By email, mail or fax: Print out a voter registration application, complete and sign it, then send it as an email attachment or by mail or fax to any Division of Elections office.

• In person: Go to any Division of Elections office or visit a voter registration agency in your area, which includes DMV offices, public assistance agencies, participating public libraries and participating tribal government offices. 

If registering to vote for the first time by email, mail, fax or in person, you must provide a current Alaska driver’s license, state ID card, U.S. passport, military ID card, hunting or fishing license, birth certificate or another valid photo ID. You also need to provide your driver’s license number, state ID card number or the last four digits of your Social Security number.

Check your registration status using the state’s voter information portal.

For the general election only, you may register to vote at the polls on Election Day and complete a questioned ballot or vote an in-person absentee ballot at an in-person absentee voting location.

When registering, you must provide a current Alaska driver’s license, state ID card, U.S. passport, military ID card, hunting or fishing license, birth certificate or another valid photo ID. You also need to provide your driver’s license number, state ID card number or the last four digits of your Social Security number.

Alaska uses a ranked-choice voting system for the general election. You’ll be given a ballot that allows you to rank candidates in order of preference. (You may rank as many or as few candidates as you’d like. If you don’t want to rank a candidate, leave their row blank.) In the first round of vote counting, only voters’ first preferences are tallied. For a candidate to win, the candidate must receive a majority — 50 percent plus one vote — of all first-choice votes cast. If no candidate gets a majority, a second round of tallying is conducted. In the second round, the last-place candidate from round one is eliminated, and this candidate’s votes are reallocated to their supporters’ second preference. This process continues until one candidate reaches over 50 percent of the votes or until there are two candidates remaining and the candidate with the most votes wins.

Read more about ranked-choice voting on the Division of Elections website.

All registered voters can vote absentee. Applications open on January 1st of every year and must be received by Saturday, Oct. 26 for the general election. When applying, you must provide a copy of a valid photo ID, along with either a driver’s license number, state ID number or the last four digits of your Social Security number. You can apply:

• By mail: Download and complete the absentee ballot application, then send it to the Absentee and Petition Office. Or, ask the Division of Elections Absentee and Petition Office to mail you an application by calling 907-270-2700 or 877-375-6508 (toll-free within the U.S.).

• By email: Download and complete the absentee ballot application, then email it to akabsentee@alaska.gov. 

• By fax: Download and complete the absentee ballot application, then fax it to the Absentee and Petition Office at 907-677-9943 or 855-677-9943 (toll-free within the U.S.).  

• In person: Visit any Alaska Division of Elections office.

Alternatively, you may request an absentee ballot by fax or electronically delivery, but you must wait until Monday, Oct. 21 to apply. Completed applications for faxed or electronically delivered absentee ballots must be received by 5 p.m., Monday, Nov. 4.

If you request a by-fax absentee ballot, your ballot will be faxed to you 24 to 48 hours after receipt of your application with instructions on how to complete it.

If you request an electronically delivered ballot, you’ll be emailed a link to a digital ballot 24 to 48 hours after receipt of your application. After completing your ballot online, you must print and return it by mail or fax.

Return your absentee ballot:

• By mail: Use the return address provided with your ballot, and ensure it’s postmarked on or before Election Day.

• In person: Drop off your completed ballot to any voting location by 8 p.m. on Election Day. 

• By fax: Ballots can be returned by fax only if you requested a by-fax or electronically delivered absentee ballot. Fax your completed ballot to the number provided with your ballot by 8 p.m. on Election Day. Note: When you return a ballot by fax, you voluntarily waive your right to a secret ballot and are assuming the risk that a faulty transmission may occur. 

Completed absentee ballots must include a witness signature and at least one voter identifier: either your voter registration number, the last four digits of your Social Security number, date of birth, Alaska driver’s license number or state ID card number.

All registered voters may vote early in Alaska. Absentee in-person and early voting locations are open for voting starting Monday, Oct. 21, and through Election Day. Find locations in your area by checking the Division of Elections website. Hours vary by location.

The same identification rules for voting on election day apply to voting absentee in-person or voting early. (See below.) You must sign an affidavit swearing you won’t vote in any other manner.

Poll hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Find your polling place with the Division of Election office’s online tool.

Sample ballots will be available on the secretary of state’s website approximately 50 days before the general election (Monday, Sep. 16).

Bring an acceptable form of photo ID, such as your voter ID card, driver’s license, state ID, passport or hunting or fishing license. If you don’t have one of these IDs, you may present a current utility bill, paycheck, government check, bank statement or another government-issued document.

If an election official knows the identity of the voter, the official can waive the ID, unless it’s a first-time voter.

You may be asked to fill out a questioned ballot if you don’t have identification, your name isn’t on the precinct register, your residence address changed, you already voted according to the precinct register or an observer challenges your qualifications to vote. Questioned ballots go to the state’s Questioned Review Board, who will determine if your ballot can be counted.

Voters with disabilities and nursing homes residents can vote absentee. You can also request to have a personal representative pick up and deliver a ballot to you if you can’t vote in person due to age, illness or disability. Representatives can pick up a ballot at any absentee voting location starting Monday, Oct. 21, or at your polling place.

When voting in person, voters who need assistance filling in their ballot can receive help from an election official or person of their choice, as long as that person is not a candidate, an employer, an agent of the voter’s employer or a union official.

Each polling place is equipped with magnifying viewers for the visually impaired and voting tablets with magnified text and audio ballot options. Find more information at the secretary of state’s website.

Editor’s note: This guide was originally published Jan. 8, 2024, and updated with new information about voting in the 2024 elections.

Grace Dickinson is a writer for aarp.org who covers federal and state policy. She previously wrote for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Her work has also appeared on sites including HuffPost and Eater.

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