Tuesday is the big day — voters across the state will head to the polls for Election Day. That’s unless they’ve taken advantage of early voting, which is already underway.
Long lines for early voting and uncontested local races in Juneau haven’t stopped voters here. Juneau resident Amy Smith described how it felt to cast her first-ever vote in a presidential election at the Mendenhall Mall on Monday.
“A mix of exciting and nervousness, making sure I filled out everything correctly,” she said.
Early voting in Juneau took place at the Mendenhall Mall and the State Office Building. On Monday afternoon, the line at the mall was out the door. But Smith said it was worth the roughly 45-minute wait.
“I just want my voice to be heard, and I just don’t want the country to go in a direction I don’t want it to go without my say,” she said.
Lauri Wilson, the state’s Region 1 election supervisor, said throughout the weekend the mall had lines out the door and into the parking lot.
“We’ve had a good voter turnout,” she said. “We’re happy to see voters turn out here and get their vote in for the 24’ general election. We expect today to be pretty steady as well as tomorrow.”
On the ballot, voters can rank candidates for president and vice president, Alaska’s sole U.S. House seat and the local state House and Senate races. Plus, there are two ballot propositions asking voters whether to raise the state’s minimum wage and repeal ranked-choice voting.
Juneau resident Jake Carpenter lives downtown but was in the Valley on Monday to cast his ballot.
“I mean, all elections are important, right?” he said. “I think this is kind of a pivotal moment for our nation when it comes to our democracy. So I’m glad to see so many people out here voting, and I hope that they, and I imagine that they all recognize the gravity of this election.”
Carpenter said the presidential election is what motivated him the most to go out and vote, but he said everything on the ballot was important for him to consider.
Juneau has one seat in the Alaska Senate. It’s filled by Jesse Kiehl. Sara Hannan and Andi Story fill Juneau’s two seats in the Alaska House. All are Democrats who took office in 2019. They’re also running uncontested for reelection.
“Voters in our region have got to show up and make your voices heard, because it matters tremendously,” Kiehl said in an interview. “If our issues are going to remain important issues, our votes have to count statewide, and that means we have to go out and cast them. It’s as simple as that.”
Kiehl said despite all Juneau’s races being uncontested, every vote counts. After all, Southeast Alaska makes up roughly 10% of the state.
All three lawmakers have been strong supporters of getting a permanent increase to state education funding – an issue that dominated the last legislative session. Story said it’s one of the main reasons she’s running again.
“I can just taste we are so close to getting a permanent education BSA, Base Student Allocation, over the finish line,” she said.
Hannan said voter participation is what helps her shape what policy she and other lawmakers choose to focus on — policy that can directly impact the lives of people in Juneau and across Alaska.
“My job as a legislator, I represent everyone who lives in my district, whether they vote for me or not, and everyone in the state, so hearing from a diversity of voices helps us formulate policy and people need to remember that,” she said.
And for Juneau residents like Feleti Tupou, voting means much more to him than just filling out some bubbles.
“Freedom. The opportunities are endless in this country,” he said. “If we come out here and support the election, and be able to choose the things that we have then that’s what brings freedom to us. There are many countries out there that cannot do that.”
Juneau voters can find more information about where and how to vote on Election Day by visiting the Alaska Division of Elections website.
The first round of election results is anticipated to drop shortly after the polls close at 8 p.m. – but we may not know the outcome of some races for weeks. Final results will be certified later this month.