How a convicted senator lost his seat in Alaska's most dramatic election cycle

Countries & Cities · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In 2008, incumbent Republican Ted Stevens faced a brutal re-election bid while under federal indictment. Despite his decades of seniority and influence, a late-stage corruption conviction and a massive influx of absentee ballots handed victory to Democrat Mark Begich, marking a rare shift in Alaska's political landscape.

Ted Stevens, a fixture in the U.S. Senate since 1968, was a powerful figure known for securing federal funding for Alaska. However, his 2008 campaign was overshadowed by a federal investigation into ethics violations. On October 27, 2008, just days before the election, Stevens was convicted on seven felony counts of failing to report gifts. Had he won, he would have been the first convicted felon elected to the U.S. Senate. Despite the verdict, Stevens maintained his innocence and continued his campaign, hoping to overcome the setback.

His challenger, Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, capitalized on the political climate. The race was exceptionally tight, with Stevens initially leading on election night. The dynamic shifted dramatically on November 12, when the counting of nearly 60,000 absentee and mail-in ballots erased Stevens's lead. By November 18, the Associated Press called the race for Begich, and Stevens conceded the following day. The final margin was 1.3%, making it the second-closest Senate race in the 2008 cycle. Begich’s win was historic, as it was the first time a Democrat had won that specific Senate seat since 1966.

The aftermath of the election brought further upheaval. In April 2009, the conviction against Stevens was set aside after the U.S. attorney general revealed serious prosecutorial misconduct during the trial, and all charges were eventually dropped. Stevens died in a plane crash on August 9, 2010. His defeat remains a significant moment in Alaskan history, representing the only time a Democrat won a U.S. Senate election in the state since 1974, until a special election in 2022 eventually saw another Democrat elected to federal office.

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