Alaska Republicans chose Donald Trump over Nikki Haley by an enormous margin in Tuesday’s party-run election.
Trump won about 88% of the vote in the Republican contest. Haley won about 12%.
Trump voters seemed especially enthusiastic at Grace Church in South Anchorage, one of four voting locations in the city.
Retiree Jim White was astounded there was any question who he voted for.
“TRUMP! What the hell?” he said. “Do you think I’m crazy? … Because everything he accomplished was for the nation, for the citizens and for the world. OK?”
White said he only heard of the election the day before, from a friend. Then he drove to three places where he’s voted in the past, in state-run elections. But this was a Presidential Preference Poll, run by the party. Locations and hours were limited.
“People have been trying to vote all day,” said Mike Robbins, supervisor at the Grace Church voting site and vice chair of the Alaska Republican Party. Force of habit, he said, had many people turning out bright and early, even though voting locations were only open 3-8 p.m.
“They’ve been going to polling places around the city since about 8 o’clock this morning,” Robbins said.
About 10,500 Republican voters cast ballots across much of Alaska yesterday.
The party won’t finalize the numbers until next week, but if preliminary results hold, Trump has won all 29 of the delegates Alaska will send to the national convention this summer. Haley has apparently fallen short of the 13% she needed to win any Alaska delegates.
Alaska’s Super Tuesday vote was only for Republicans. Alaska Democrats will choose their nominee next month.
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.
