1998Final results
1998 election for U.S. Senate in Alaska
U.S. Senate · Alaska
Frank Murkowski (R) won with 74.5% of the vote, defeating Joseph A. "joe" Sonneman (D) by 54.8 points.
Frank MurkowskiRepublican · winner
74.5%165,227
Joseph A. "joe" SonnemanDemocrat
19.7%43,743
Jeffrey GottliebGreen
3.2%7,126
Scott A. KohlhaasLibertarian
2.3%5,046
221,807 votes
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1998
Races before and after
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Joseph A. "joe" SonnemanFrank Murkowski
$25.7K
Raised by the campaign
$1.4M
$26.2K
Spent by the campaign
$911.9K
$260
Cash on hand
$617.2K
Campaign money: FEC, through Dec 31, 1998.
Source: FEC campaign filingsUpdated Dec 31, 1998
The candidates
Frank Murkowski (R)Joseph A. "joe" Sonneman (D)
Also on the ballot: Jeffrey Gottlieb (Green), 3.2%; Scott A. Kohlhaas (Libertarian), 2.3%