Kenai to hold special mid-April election
Published 11:30 am Friday, March 27, 2026
The City of Kenai will hold a special election on Tuesday, April 14, to put the questions forth to voters of whether to move the regular city election date to align with the borough and state elections.
Voters approved a ballot proposition in the municipal election last fall to move borough elections from October to November to align with state and federal election dates. While the ballot proposition did not automatically change election schedules for incorporated cities like Kenai or Homer, an election notice on the City of Kenai website states that the initiative did see “strong support” from Kenai voters, with 66.5% voting in favor.
Like other cities in the Kenai Peninsula Borough, the City of Kenai previously conducted their annual elections concurrently with the borough under a mutual aid agreement that afforded “significant” cost savings to the city. The election notice also states that Kenai’s results from the last October municipal election “indicated that City residents were interested in aligning election dates to improve participation and reduce voter fatigue.”
The April 14 special election is “the only way” to allow voters in the City of Kenai to decide whether to align the city election with the borough and state annual election dates, prior to the next annual election.
Voters will decide on two ballot propositions on April 14. Proposition 2026-A would amend the Kenai Municipal Charter by moving the annual date of the city’s general election from the first Tuesday in October to the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November of each calendar year. Proposition 2026-B, if approved, would set the fixed date for this year’s city general election and amend the city charter to allow all future general election dates to be set by ordinance.
The Kenai City Council’s scheduling of the special election is a change from how other cities in the Kenai Peninsula Borough recently decided to shift their election dates. Soldotna City Council members voted in November to move their regular elections, after Soldotna Mayor Paul Whitney said a majority of Soldotna city voters favored a move to November. The Homer City Council voted earlier this month to also move Homer’s elections to November.
Absentee in-person voting begins March 30. Absentee by-mail applications must be received by 5 p.m. on April 7, and absentee by-electronic transmission applications must be received by 5 p.m. on April 13.
The polls will be open on Election Day, April 14, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The canvass board will meet on April 21 and the election results will be certified on May 6.
The next regular borough and state election will be held Nov. 3.
Find more information at www.kenai.city/clerk/page/2026-special-election-information.
