Alaska's at-large congressional district | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Representative | |
Area | 665,384.04[1] sq mi (1,723,336.8 km2) |
Distribution |
|
Population (2022) | 733,583[3] |
Median household income | $88,121[4] |
Ethnicity |
|
Cook PVI | R+8[5] |
Since becoming a U.S. state in 1959, Alaska has been entitled to one member in the United States House of Representatives. The representative is elected at-large, because the state has only one congressional district, encompassing its entire territory. By area, Alaska's congressional district is the largest congressional district in the United States and the third-largest electoral district represented by a single member in the world. It is exceeded by Yakutsk district in Russia, which is similar in size to India and is the largest, and Nunavut, which comprises a single electoral district in Canada.
On August 31, 2022, Democrat Mary Peltola defeated Republican former governor Sarah Palin in the special election to replace Don Young, who died on March 18 of the same year. Peltola became the first Democrat elected to the House of Representatives from Alaska since 1972, and the first Alaska Native in history to be elected to the United States House of Representatives.
As of 2024, the state comprises the most Republican-leaning congressional district to be represented by a Democrat. It has a partisan lean of R+8.[5]