Do you know what district you live in? Find State of Alaska District Voting Maps here.
We need to mobilize millions to ensure the highest turnout ever!
A terrible and bloody Civil War freed enslaved Americans. The Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution (1868) granted African Americans the rights of citizenship. However, this did not always translate into the ability to vote. Black voters were systematically turned away from state polling places. To combat this problem, Congress passed the Fifteenth Amendment in 1870. It says:
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
Yet states still found ways to circumvent the Constitution and prevent blacks from voting. Poll taxes, literacy tests, fraud and intimidation all turned African Americans away from the polls. Until the Supreme Court struck it down in 1915, many states used the “grandfather clause ” to keep descendents of slaves out of elections. The clause said you could not vote unless your grandfather had voted — an impossibility for most people whose ancestors were slaves.
This unfair treatment was debated on the street, in the Congress and in the press. A full fifty years after the Fifteenth Amendment passed, black Americans still found it difficult to vote, especially in the South.” What a Colored Man Should Do to Vote“, lists many of the barriers African American voters faced.
The fight for African American suffrage raged on for decades. In the 1930s one Georgia man described the situation this way: “Do you know I’ve never voted in my life, never been able to exercise my right as a citizen because of the poll tax? … I can’t pay a poll tax, can’t have a voice in my own government.”
Demonstrators marching in the street holding signs during the March on Washington, 1963
Many brave and impassioned Americans protested, marched, were arrested and even died working toward voting equality. In 1963 and 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. brought hundreds of black people to the courthouse in Selma, Alabama to register. When they were turned away, Dr. King organized and led protests that finally turned the tide of American political opinion. In 1964 the Twenty-fourth Amendment prohibited the use of poll taxes. In 1965, the Voting Rights Act directed the Attorney General to enforce the right to vote for African Americans.
The 1965 Voting Rights Act created a significant change in the status of African Americans throughout the South. The Voting Rights Act prohibited the states from using literacy tests and other methods of excluding African Americans from voting. Prior to this, only an estimated twenty-three percent of voting-age blacks were registered nationally, but by 1969 the number had jumped to sixty-one percent. We know that if people of color and specifically black voters participated in elections at the same rate as white voters have we would have a progressive majority. Black voters are skeptical of the political establishment, unhappy with candidate choices, frustrated with structural and institutional racism, slow job growth, no wage growth, the rising costs of health care, the rising cost of college and the rising cost of housing, and disturbed about police violence. We can address many of these issues by electing the right individuals and passing the right legislation.
Your vote DOES MATTER!
#GOTV #VoteSafeAK #AKVoters #ABCVotes #BlackVotesMatter #AlaskaVotes
2020 Elections & Info
You can register to vote and update your voter registration thirty (30) days before the election.
Be sure to check out you voter registration status!
Language assistance is available as well and should be available at all polling locations.
2020 GENERAL ELECTION Election Dates and Hours
The most current information will always be on the Alaska Division of Elections website.
Sunday, October 4, 2020
- Deadline for voters to register to vote or update their registration
Friday, October 9, 2020
- Target date to begin mailing absentee by-mail ballots to all voters.
Monday, October 19, 2020
- Absentee In Person, EV, electronic transmission and Special Needs voting begins.
- Deadline for OEP candidate pages to be posted on the web.
Saturday, October 24, 2020
- Deadline to receive absentee by-mail applications.
Thursday, October 29, 2020
- Deadline for write-in candidates to submit a letter of intent.
Monday, November 2, 2020
- Deadline to receive absentee by electronic transmission ballot applications. (5:00 PM Alaska Standard Time)
Tuesday, November 3, 2020
GENERAL ELECTION DAY. Polls open from 7a.m. - 8p.m.
- Absentee ballots by-fax, or by online delivery, returned by-fax must be received by 8:00 p.m. Alaska Standard Time
- Absentee by-mail ballots must be postmarked by Election Day.
- Absentee ballots by-fax or by online delivery, returned by-mail, must be postmarked by Election Day.
- GENERAL ELECTION DAY. Polls open from 7a.m. – 8p.m.
Different Ways To Vote – Quick Overview
ABSENTEE IN-PERSON: Absentee in person voting is available at all voting locations. When voting absentee in-person, your eligibility to vote in the election is verified after voting. You must still apply for an absentee ballot.
ABSENTEE BY-MAIL: This is known as both absentee voting and voting by mail. Alaskans can request an application to vote from home for any reason (anyone can vote from home). Apply online to Click Here. To apply using a fillable paper application, Click Here. If you don’t have a computer, register in-person at any Division of Elections Office or visit a voter registration agency in your area.
SPECIAL NEEDS VOTING: If you are unable to vote in person due to age, serious illness or disability, you can have a personal representative pick up a ballot.
IN-PERSON VOTING: Requires you to physically go to your polling place to vote. The Alaska Black Caucus recommends voting by absentee to reduce the spread of COVID19.
You can also call 1-888-383-8683 or 907-269-8683 (within the Municipality of Anchorage) to find your polling place.
The My Voter Information page will also have your polling place listed.
ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION VOTING: If the above voting options are not accessible, you can apply to receive your ballot by online delivery or fax. You must still return your ballot by mail. You cannot vote online.
If you are voting Absentee By-Mail, you will need a witness to sign your ballot. Your witness can be anyone over the age of 18. You may also choose to have an authorized official (Notary Public, municipal clerk, or any other official authorized and willing to administer the oath) but this is not necessary. Postal employees are prohibited from serving as witnesses in their official capacity while on duty.
REGISTER TO VOTE
It takes two minutes to register to vote! Visit the Division of Elections website then select “Voters” in the top menu bar. Online registration is available as well as paper form registration. The form can be mailed, emailed or faxed to the Division of Elections office.
Director’s Office – Division of Elections
240 Main Street Suite 400
PO Box 110017, Juneau, AK 99811-0017
(907) 465-4611 Fax: 907-465-3202
elections@alaska.gov
DIVISION OF ELECTIONS CONTACT INFO
Director’s Office
Division of Elections
240 Main Street Suite 400
PO Box 110017, Juneau AK, 99811-0017
(907) 465-4611 Fax: (907) 465-3202
elections@alaska.gov
Contact Your Regional Elections Office
Region 1 (Juneau) // 907-465-3021
Region 2 (Anchorage) // 907-522-8683
Region 3 (Mat-Su) // 907-373-8952
Region 4 (Fairbanks) // 907-451-2835
Region 5 (Nome) // 907-443-4285
Alaska Director of Elections
Gail Fenumiai
Phone: 907-465-461
ABSENTEE VOTING - Vote Safely!
Every Alaskan can vote from home!
You have the ability to vote at home by requesting an absentee ballot through a quick and easy application. You must fill out an absentee ballot application and return it to the Division of Elections at least ten (10) days before the election. Request your ballot today:
- Apply online https://absenteeballotapplication.alaska.gov
- Download a paper absentee ballot application, fill out and mail, fax or email Division of Elections. Download the paper form here.
- Call the Division of Elections at (907) 465-4611 or 1-866-952-8683 to request an absentee ballot application to be mailed to your home. You will need to fill it out and return it to the Division of Elections.
VOTING IN PERSON
Early voting begins fifteen (15) days before the primary and general election.
Based on your address, you will have an assigned polling location. To find your polling location, dates and hours, check out this website.
Don’t forget to wear your mask, physical distance (6 feet or more) and wash your hands! Bring hand sanitizer if you’re able. It’s important that your vote is counted and you stay safe and healthy while you vote!
Besides your polling precinct, there are other early voting locations including the municipal building in downtown Anchorage, Alaska Native Medical Center, Division of Elections on Gambell Street and many other locations in Anchorage and across the state.
THINGS REVIEW BEFORE YOU VOTE
SAMPLE BALLOTS
Before you go into the voting booth, you can review your ballot online so that you know what to expect to be on your ballot. Find a sample ballot for every district in Alaska on the Division of Elections website.
CANDIDATE INFORMATION
The Division of Elections lists out all of the candidates that have filed to run for office. To find out who is running for election in your district, visit the Division of Elections website to research who you will expect to see on your ballot.
The Official Election Pamphlet (OEP) is prepared to assist Alaskan voters in making informed decisions. The OEP includes biographical statements prepared by the candidate who elected to participate in the OEP. The OEP also includes information about ballot measures, how to vote, voting locations, absentee voting and voter rights.
The OEP is mailed to every voter household no later than 22 days prior to election day. It is also available online in a PDF format in English, Spanish, Tagalog and some Alaska Native languages. Additionally, the OEP is made available in audio format by the Talking Book Center. For audio assistance, the Talking Book Center can be contacted at (907) 465-1315 or toll free 1-888-820-4525
BALLOT INITIATIVES
This year the general election ballot will have two ballot initiatives. We encourage you to read the ballot initiatives and research to be sure you get all of your questions answered before voting.
Ballot Measure One: An Act Changing the oil and gas production tax for certain fields, units and non-unionized reservoirs on the North Slope. Read the Ballot Measure One language that you will see on your ballot to be informed at the polls.
Ballot Measure Two: An Act Replacing the Political Party Primary with an Open Primary System and Ranked-Choice General Election, and requiring Additional Campaign Finance Disclosures. Read the Ballot Measure Two language that you will find on your ballot to be informed at the polls.