Nick Begich repeatedly questioned the legitimacy and fairness of the 2020 presidential election, citing concerns about censorship, election procedure changes, and a general "crisis of confidence" in the system, but stopped short of claiming the election was stolen (Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire).
Begich acknowledges Joe Biden as president but maintains that the methods used to secure his victory---such as last-minute election rule changes and alleged suppression of free speech---were not legitimate (Nome Nugget, NBC - 2 KTUU).
He is a vocal opponent of ranked choice voting, arguing that it adds confusion and does not reflect the will of voters, but has urged Republicans to use the system strategically via "rank the red" messaging (Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch News).
Begich supported the SAVE Act, which would impose new voting restrictions, despite concerns that it could disproportionately affect Alaskans (Homer News).
Critics and letter writers have labeled Begich an "election denier" and noted his avoidance of directly affirming the 2020 election's legitimacy despite a lack of evidence for widespread fraud (Juneau Empire, Alaska Dispatch News).
Nick Begich Did Not Say If He Believed Biden Won Legitimately But Cited Election 'Crisis' According to USA Today, "Begich did not directly respond to whether he thinks President Joe Biden 'legitimately' won the election, when asked by Alaska Public Media. Instead, he acknowledged Biden is president, but said there is a 'crisis' of trust 'in our election system,' and 'restoring' it 'requires improved public transparency.'" [USA Today, 8/29/22]
October 2024: Begich Expressed Doubts About Fairness Of 2020 Presidential Election According to Anchorage Daily News, 'I believe Joe Biden won the election because he's the president today,' he said. 'But what we have to look at is all of the things that were required in order for him to do that.' [...] 'I don't think suppressing free speech in our country is a legitimate mechanism in order to get elected,' he said. [Anchorage Daily News, 10/11/24]
October 2024: Begich Repeated Election-Related Claims About 2020 Presidential Race According to Anchorage Daily News, "Begich was asked during Thursday's debate whether he believed President Biden legitimately won the election. He repeated conspiracy theories similar to those that Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, have repeatedly used to deny the election result." [Anchorage Daily News (Alaska), 10/11/24]
October 2024: Begich Questioned Legitimacy Of 2020 Presidential Election According to Juneau Empire, 'He [Begich] was elected president. The techniques that were used in order to get him elected, I don't think they're legitimate,' Begich said. He alleged that Google was censoring search results and 'last-minute (elections) changes under the guise of the COVID emergency' could have affected the result. [Juneau Empire (Alaska), 10/11/24]
October 2024: Nick Begich Questioned Legitimacy Of 2020 Presidential Election According to Nome Nugget, "He [Begich] was elected president. The techniques that were used in order to get him elected, I don't think they're legitimate." [Nome Nugget, 10/17/24]
2024: Letter Writer Roger Birk Claimed Nick Begich Was an Election Denier According to a letter to the editor published in Juneau Empire, "Begich is also an election denier even though there is zero proof of election fraud. Over 60 court cases found no evidence of election tampering. The nation's top election security official under Trump, Christopher Krebs, refuted Trump's unsubstantiated claims of electoral fraud." [Letter to the Editor - Juneau Empire, 10/26/24]
October 2024: Nick Begich III Questioned Legitimacy Of 2020 Presidential Election According to Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (Alaska), "He was elected president," Begich said. "The techniques that were used in order to get him elected, I don't think they're legitimate." [Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (Alaska), 11/1/24]
2025: Homer News Opinion Noted Nick Begich Supported SAVE Act Voting Restrictions According to an opinion piece by Marylou Burton in Homer News, "Nick Begich, Alaska's sole U.S. congressman, continues to show that he is more interested in being allowed into the Trump inner circle than serving Alaska. The latest example? He voted YEA on the Save American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act." [Marylou Burton - Homer News, 4/17/25]
2022: Letter Writer Gregg Brelsford Asserted Nick Begich Avoided Clarifying Position on 2020 Election Legitimacy According to a letter to the editor published in Alaska Dispatch News, "Candidates Nick Begich and Kelly Tshibaka made me dizzy with their ducking, dodging and sidestep-dancing to avoid straight answers, especially on two profoundly important questions: Do you (personally) believe Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 presidential election (free of substantial fraud)... Neither Begich nor Tshibaka answered the first question directly. Begich stated the obvious, that Biden is our president. He wrote obscurely about a 'crisis of confidence in our election systems' without revealing what the crisis is, where it came from, how it relates to Biden's election, or what he would do about it if elected." [Letter to the Editor - Alaska Dispatch News, 8/14/22]
October 2024: Begich Voiced Doubts About Fairness Of 2020 Presidential Election According to Anchorage Daily News, "Begich was asked during Thursday s debate whether he believed President Biden legitimately won the election. He repeated conspiracy theories similar to those that Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, have repeatedly used to deny the election result. 'I believe Joe Biden won the election because he s the president today,' he said. 'But what we have to look at is all of the things that were required in order for him to do that.'" [Anchorage Daily News, 10/11/24]
October 2024: Begich Referred To Election Tactics As Unacceptable According to Juneau Empire, 'I think it's worth looking at that. I think it's acceptable and reasonable for any American to question, hey, is this reasonable? Is this what we expect in a free and fair election? And I think the answer is a clear "No," and I hope we don't see those same tactics deployed here in the last few weeks of the campaign,' Begich said. [Juneau Empire (Alaska), 10/11/24]
2024: Begich Questioned 2020 Election Processes Without Claiming It Was Stolen According to Juneau Empire, "Meanwhile Begich is among many Republicans questioning the legitimacy of the 2020 election---in his case questioning processes and rule changes rather than saying it was stolen outright." [Juneau Empire (Alaska), 11/1/24]
2022: Begich Affirmed Biden As President But Cited Election Confidence Crisis According to Alaska Dispatch News, "Unfortunately, Joe Biden is the president. It's clear that we have a crisis of confidence in our election systems and restoring that confidence requires improved public transparency." [Alaska Dispatch News, 8/6/22]
2022: Nick Begich Commented On 2020 Presidential Election Legitimacy According to Alaska Dispatch News, "Unfortunately, Joe Biden is the president. It's clear that we have a crisis of confidence in our election systems and restoring that confidence requires improved public transparency." [Alaska Dispatch News, 8/7/22]
2022: Nick Begich Addressed January 6 Responsibilities According to Alaska Dispatch News, "We are a nation built on rule of law and the enforcement thereof. Further, no citizen may stand above the law, irrespective of their position. Any determination of who bears responsibility for illegal acts conducted at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2020 must rest with the courts and should be determined based on those sets of facts that pass the test of reasonable doubt." [Alaska Dispatch News, 8/7/22]
October 2024: Begich Claimed Censorship And Last-Minute Election Changes Influenced 2020 Outcome According to Anchorage Daily News, "Begich went on to claim that censorship of Google and social media had suppressed free speech. He argued that last-minute changes to election procedures were administered under the guide of COVID restrictions in a number of swing states, and said, I think it s worth looking at that." [Anchorage Daily News, 10/11/24]
2024: Nick Begich Acknowledged Joe Biden As President But Cited Censorship Concerns Around 2020 Election According to NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, Alaska), "'I believe Joe Biden won the election because he's the president today, but what we have to look away is all the things that were required in order for him to do that. We saw a great deal of censorship in their search results on social media, suppressing free speech in our nation. These are the things that happened behind the scenes,' Begich said." [NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, Alaska), 10/11/24]
October 2024: Nick Begich Alleged Election Interference Techniques Affected 2020 Presidential Result According to Nome Nugget, "He alleged that Google was censoring search results and 'last-minute (elections) changes under the guise of the COVID emergency' could have affected the result." [Nome Nugget, 10/17/24]
2022: Significant Numbers Of Begich Voters Did Not Rank Palin Second In Alaska House Election According To Juneau Empire According to Juneau Empire, "Two years ago, when Republicans Nick Begich and Sarah Palin ran against Democratic candidate Mary Peltola, significant numbers of Begich voters declined to list Palin as a second option, contributing to Peltola's victory in an August special election and again in a November general election." [Juneau Empire, 9/4/24]
2022: Don Canning Highlighted Nick Begich's Defeat Under Ranked Choice Voting According to an opinion piece by Don Canning in Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, "In 2022 the first year that it was used in Alaska Mary Peltola won the special election for the vacant U.S. House seat, even though the combined totals of Nick Begich's and Sarah Palin's votes would have beaten Peltola if Palin had been knocked out in the second round and her second-choice votes had gone to Begich. That was complicated, but, trust me, it's true. Ranked choice failed, in other words, to pick what voting experts call a 'Condorcet winner' meaning a winner who would win with a majority in any two-way match-up with any other candidate in that race." [Don Canning - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 11/3/24]
Don Canning Asserted Nick Begich Could Claim Condorcet Failure in 2022 Special Election According to an opinion piece by Don Canning in Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, "There have been two Condorcet failures in 58 American presidential elections (that I'm aware of, and this is ignoring the effects of the Electoral College) and a third that came close. When these failures happen, it's a big deal to the erroneously-losing candidate and that candidate's supporters ... as both Nick Begich and Al Gore can confirm." [Don Canning - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 11/3/24]
2025: Homer News Opinion Claimed Nick Begich Knew SAVE Act Would Disproportionately Impact Alaskans According to an opinion piece by Marylou Burton in Homer News, "He knows that a sizeable bloc of citizens in his own state will be disproportionately affected by the SAVE Act. But during his very short tenure he has shown himself to be in lockstep with the current administration." [Marylou Burton - Homer News, 4/17/25]
August 2022: Begich Participated In Election Under Alaska's New Ranked Choice Voting System According to Anchorage Press, "Vote for one candidate in each race in the primary. The flip side of the ballot which contains the special general election for the U.S. House allows you to rank the three candidates in whatever order you choose. They are Sarah Palin, Nick Begich and Mary Peltola." [Anchorage Press, 8/3/22]
August 2022: Nick Begich III Stated He Ranked Palin Second And Wrote In A Candidate For Third Choice According to Alaska Dispatch News, "He said Tuesday that he ranked Palin second and wrote in a candidate for his third choice: 'Donald Duck Jr.'" [Alaska Dispatch News, 8/16/22]
August 2022: Nick Begich III Was Likely To Be Eliminated In Ranked Choice Voting Tabulation According to Alaska Dispatch News, "Begich is trailing behind Palin and not likely to catch up. If he's eliminated, the question then becomes whether enough of Begich's supporters ranked Palin second for her to overtake Peltola. Lottsfeldt calls that 'the million-dollar question.'" [Alaska Dispatch News, 8/17/22]
August 2022: Nick Begich Was Considered Likely To Help Palin Via Second-Choice Votes According to Anchorage Press, "political commentators have said they expect many of his voters may have Palin, a fellow Republican, as their second choice. If that's the case [...] Palin will win." [Anchorage Press (Alaska), 8/17/22]
2022: Letter Writer Eric Troyer Reported Many Begich Voters Selected Peltola Second or Left Ballot Blank According to a letter to the editor published in Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, "The large number of Begich voters who selected Peltola second or no one at all was revealing." [Letter to the Editor - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 10/3/22]
Ranked-Choice Voting In Alaska's U.S. House 2022 Race Elevated Begich Voters To Peltola According to NBC - 2 KTUU, "Peltola's victory was in large part due to the 15,445 voters who selected Begich first and Peltola second." [NBC - 2 KTUU, 10/27/22]
2024: Nick Begich Opposed Ranked Choice Voting in Debates According to an opinion piece in Juneau Empire, "In his debate with Rep. Mary Peltola this week, Begich sounded that refrain in defense of his opposition to ranked choice voting. 'I think we need to make sure that the system that we have best reflects the will of the people, and I think the system that does that best is our traditional voting system.'" [Juneau Empire Opinion - Juneau Empire, 10/24/24]
Don Canning Argued Nick Begich Should Support Ranked Choice Voting for Reliability According to an opinion piece by Don Canning in Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, "The bitter irony for Nick Begich is that, if his objection to flawed election results is one of principle and not just personal grievance, then he should support the more reliable system the one that, coincidentally, 'defeated' him: ranked choice voting." [Don Canning - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 11/3/24]
May 2025: Nick Begich Criticized Ranked Choice Voting For Adding Uncertainty And Confusion According to Anchorage Daily News, "Begich said in a Monday statement that ranked choice voting has added uncertainty and confusion to the federal election process." [Anchorage Daily News, 5/1/25]
May 2025: Nick Begich Defended 'One Person, One Vote' As The Best Election Method According to Anchorage Daily News, '"One person, one vote' is a proven, tried and true method that is easy to understand, easy to audit, and quick to report," Begich said. "Experiments with our national election systems risk disenfranchisement of voters and lead to outcomes that do not represent the true will of the American people." [Anchorage Daily News, 5/1/25]
2022: Katrina vanden Heuvel Reported Nick Begich Opposed Ranked-Choice Voting in Alaska According to an opinion piece by Katrina vanden Heuvel in Bristol Bay Times & Dutch Harbor Fisherman, "Despite what opponents of ranked-choice voting (a group that, no surprise, includes Palin and Begich) say, rankedchoice is good for democracy." [Katrina vanden Heuvel - Bristol Bay Times & Dutch Harbor Fisherman, 9/22/22]
2023: David Jensen Noted Nick Begich III Criticized Ranked-Choice Voting and Alleged Voter Fraud According to an opinion piece by David Jensen in Anchorage Daily News, "While Begich and Trump were whining about ranked choice voting and voter fraud, Rep. Mary Peltola was working across the aisle to achieve real results for Alaska." [David Jensen - Anchorage Daily News (Alaska), 12/20/23]
2023: Daniel Jenkins Asserted Nick Begich III Supported Donald Trump's Claims About Ranked Choice Voting And Voter Fraud According to an opinion piece by Daniel Jenkins in Anchorage Daily News, "While Begich and Trump were whining about ranked choice voting and voter fraud, Rep. Mary Peltola was working across the aisle to achieve real results for Alaska." [Daniel Jenkins - Anchorage Daily News, 12/22/23]
2022: Begich Acknowledged Not Supporting Ranked Choice Voting But Encouraged Conservatives To Use It According to Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, "He said that, while he never supported the ranked choice voting system now in place for Alaska's state and federal election system, Alaska's conservatives need to utilize it.'" [Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (Alaska), 10/8/22]
October 2022: Begich Opposed Ranked Choice Voting But Encouraged Republicans To Use It Strategically According to Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, "He said that, while he never supported the ranked choice voting system now in place for Alaska's state and federal election system, Alaska's conservatives need to utilize it. 'Rank the red,' he said, adding that Republicans should ideally rank him as their first choice and Palin as second." [Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, 10/8/22]
2022: Begich Adopted The 'Rank The Red' Slogan To Urge Supporters In Ranked Choice Voting. According to Alaska Dispatch News, "'At the end of the day, we are a red state. We know that,' Begich said. 'So why would we elect a Democrat? It's very easy. Rank the red.' 'Rank the red' is the slogan used by the Republican Party to encourage voters to rank both Republicans on their ballots in Alaska's new ranked choice election system, regardless of order." [Alaska Dispatch News, 11/4/22]
2022: Nick Begich Supported 'Rank The Red' Republican Voting Strategy According to Peninsula Clarion, "Both she and Begich ahead of the general election had urged voters to 'rank the red,' or the Republicans, though Palin told reporters in Anchorage Tuesday that she had to 'swallow my pride' in doing so." [Peninsula Clarion (Kenai, Alaska), 11/8/22]
October 2024: Nick Begich Expressed That Questioning 2020 Election Practices Was Reasonable According to Nome Nugget, "I think it's acceptable and reasonable for any American to question, hey, is this reasonableft Is this what we expect in a free and fair election? And I think the answer is a clear 'No,' and I hope we don't see those same tactics deployed here in the last few weeks of the campaign," Begich said. [Nome Nugget, 10/17/24]
August 2024: Nick Begich Encouraged Voter Participation In Alaska's Primary According to NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, Alaska), "A lot of folks don't realize that we have a primary right now," Begich said. "I'm encouraging everybody, no matter where you're at on the political aisle, please make your voice heard. It's very important that we vote, and please vote tomorrow if you haven't already done so." [NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, Alaska), 8/20/24]
June 2022: Nick Begich Opposed Policies Such As Making Juneteenth A Paid State Holiday, Raising The Federal Minimum Wage, Teaching Critical Race Theory, And Passing The John Lewis Voting Rights Act According to Alaska Dispatch News, "Peltola, who is Yup'ik, said she would support making Juneteenth a paid state holiday, increasing the federal minimum wage, teaching critical race theory in schools and passing the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. All of those were either outright opposed or questioned by Begich and Palin." [Alaska Dispatch News, 6/28/22]