Why It Matters
Alaska’s Division of Elections inadvertently purged more than 600 eligible voters from the active registration list ahead of the state’s August primary election, raising questions about the accuracy of a large-scale citizenship verification effort and the agency’s handling of voter rolls during an active campaign season.
What Happened
The Alaska Division of Elections removed a total of 3,058 people from the active voter list after comparing voter registration records against data from the Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles. The purge was triggered by discrepancies between the two databases, but the comparison revealed that at least 600 of those removed are U.S. citizens eligible to vote.
According to Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher, “Approximately 685 voters have contacted the Division and stated they are citizens, despite the inconsistency with the DMV’s records.” More than 100 people reported the opposite—that they are not citizens and requested their registrations be cancelled, as first reported by the Alaska Beacon.
The removed voters retain the ability to cast a ballot by submitting a “questioned ballot,” which requires them to provide additional identity information at the polling place. However, not all affected voters received notification: approximately 350 letters sent to removed voters were returned as undeliverable, and roughly 1,900 Alaskans have not yet responded to the Division’s notice.
The comparison between voter registration and DMV records occurred without advance public notice, just weeks before the August 18 primary election. This marks a departure from routine practice: in 2024, only 2,000 records were cross-checked, whereas the Division compared more than 580,000 records this year.
Election Administration Setback
The citizenship verification effort came amid broader legislative debate over election integrity. Alaska lawmakers passed Senate Bill 64, which would have established new procedures for managing voter registration, but Governor Mike Dunleavy vetoed the measure. A veto override attempt subsequently failed, with two Republican lawmakers from Southeast Alaska providing decisive votes to uphold the governor’s rejection.
Separately, the Division fired temporary poll worker Lisa Maloney on the morning of her assigned shift at the Jewel Lake precinct in Anchorage. Maloney had raised concerns about poll worker protocols in an email exchange, writing that election officials “are not confident that you will follow these instructions” regarding voters attempting to cast ballots without current registration, as first reported by the Alaska Beacon.
The Division of Elections declined to grant an interview request from the Alaska Beacon on July 28. State legislators have requested a complete list of all 3,058 removed voters, but the Division has not released it to date.
By the Numbers
3,058 — total people removed from active voter rolls
685 — voters who contacted the Division stating they are citizens
100+ — people who reported they are not citizens
350 — notification letters returned as undeliverable
1,900 — affected voters who have not yet responded
580,000+ — voter registration records compared against DMV data in 2026
2,000 — records compared in 2024
70 — noncitizens who voted or attempted to vote over the past decade, according to a similar list disclosed in 2025
Zoom Out
States across the country have undertaken voter roll maintenance efforts in recent years, seeking to balance the removal of ineligible voters with the protection of eligible citizens’ voting rights. Errors in citizenship verification—whether removing eligible voters or retaining ineligible ones—have sparked litigation and policy disputes in multiple jurisdictions. Alaska’s discovery of noncitizens voting or attempting to vote over the past decade, disclosed in a previous analysis, underscored the practical stakes of maintaining accurate rolls, yet the execution of verification efforts remains contentious.
What’s Next
Voters removed from the active list can still participate in the August 18 primary by casting a questioned ballot, provided they can furnish identification at their polling place. The Division of Elections faces ongoing pressure from state lawmakers to clarify its procedures and release the full list of affected voters. The results of the questioned ballots and any subsequent election disputes may prompt legislative action on election administration protocols in the coming months.