Sarah Palin appears to have all but sealed her place on the ballot for November's general election in the US after she claimed one of the four spots vying for a seat in the US house.
The former governor of Alaska and ex vice-presidential candidate advanced to the general election along with two challengers, Nick Begich III, a millionaire who has been backed by the Alaska Republican Party, and Mary Peltola, a former state legislator and Democrat.
Palin, Peltola and Begich are competing for Alaska's only House of Representatives seat which was formerly occupied by Don Young, who died in March.
Sarah Palin is the most high-profile candidate in the race.
SHELBY TAUBER
Young's term is due to end early next year, and the trio were also competing in a special election to serve the time.
Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Dallas, Texas, U.S., August 4, 2022. REUTERS/Shelby Tauber
Shelby Tauber
A ranked voting system, that has been adopted for the first time in order to calculate the results, means the final result may not be announced for days.
Young was the longest-serving member of the house after first being elected in 1973, holding the state's only seat for nearly 50 years.
Alaska is a reliably Republican state, making it unlikely that the results will influence whether President Joe Biden's Democrats lose their razor-thin majorities in Congress.
Republicans are expected to retake the House and also have a chance of winning control of the Senate.
Palin rose to prominence in US politics as John McCain's running mate in 2008, which saw Barack Obama come out on top in a historic election.
She was an early endorser of Donald Trump after branding herself a "mama grizzly".
Elsewhere in Alaska, with 72% of expected ballots tallied, Murkowski narrowly led with 42.7% of the vote, followed by Tshibaka at 41.4% and Democrat Patricia Chesbro at 6.2%, according to Edison. The non-partisan primary format in that state weeds out all but the top four vote-getters.
Murkowski, a moderate who is one of the more independent voices in the Senate, has held the seat since 2003.
