1970 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska

none February 2026 September 2023 1970 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska Alaska presidential no 1968 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska 1968 1972 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska 1972 November 3, 1970 Alaska's at-large congressional district File:Nick Begich (D-AK).jpg 150x150px Nick Begich Sr. Democratic Party (United States) 44,137 55.1% File:Frank Murkowski 1969.jpg Frank Murkowski Republican Party (United States) 35,947 44.9% 1970 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska by State House District.svg 400px Results by state house districtBegich: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% #3933e5 80–90%Murkowski: #e27f7f 50–60% Representative at-large Howard Pollock Republican Party (United States) Nick Begich Democratic Party (United States) The Alaska congressional election of 1970 was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1970. The term of the state's sole Representative to the United States House of Representatives expired on January 3, 1971. Incumbent Howard Wallace Pollock retired to run for Governor of Alaska. The winning candidate would serve a two-year term from January 3, 1971, to January 3, 1973. Nick Begich defeated former Alaska Commissioner of Economic Development & Anchorage banker Frank Murkowski, by a margin of 10.2%.Chinn, Ronald E. “The 1970 Election in Alaska.” The Western Political Quarterly, vol. 24, no. 2, 1971, pp. 234–42. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/446868. Accessed 5 Mar. 2023. Begich would go missing on October 16, 1972, posthumously win the 1972 election, be declared dead on December 29, 1972, and be succeeded by Don Young, who won the 1973 special election. Young would hold the seat for 49 years, until his death in 2022. Murkowski would be elected U.S. Senator in the 1980 Senate election, and later become Governor for one term in the 2002 gubernatorial election. Campaign Begich, now more experienced following his 1968 campaign, had maintained many files from the prior campaign, knowing full well how to campaign amongst the vast, sparsely populated state. Murkowski, a banker with little to no political experience, relied instead on his economic experience, being a 28-year Alaska resident & senior banker, notably serving as Alaska Commissioner of Economic Development under Governor Walter Hickel, as well as tying himself to the policies of popular freshman U.S. Senator Ted Stevens & President Richard Nixon. Begich used simple but effective campaign slogans such as "You must be able to trust your Congressman" and "A true representative of all the people", as well as relying on his voting record in the State Senate. Murkowski countered by campaigning on legislation to raise military pay as to provide more incentive to serve, as well as an all-volunteer military. Republicans were much more successful in raising campaign funding, but Democrats brought more people, as was shown when the Republicans sold 100 $10 tickets to a Fairbanks rally where U.S. Senator John Tower spoke, just for Democrats to draw a crowd of 500, admission free, to a rally at Alaskaland. Due to Begich's support for the Alaska Federation of Natives' views on Alaska land claims disputes, a high issue since statehood, Begich performed very well amongst native voters and the 'Bush' regions of Alaska, especially due to the Republican tickets' failure to adequately address economic concerns, something key for the economically depressed natives. General election Results 1970 Alaska at-large congressional district electionElection Results 446868 https://www.jstor.org/stable/446868 Democratic Party (United States) Nick Begich 44,137 55.1% +9.3% Republican Party (United States) Frank Murkowski 35,947 44.9% -9.3% 80,084 100.00% References 1970 Alaska United States House of Representatives