According to Axios, Mary Peltola has been interviewing potential campaign managers in preparation to challenge Senator Dan Sullivan for his seat in the U.S. Senate in this year’s general election.
In 2022, Mary Peltola was elected to the 117th Congress to fill the vacancy left by the death of Representative Donald Edwin Young. She was re-elected to serve a full term in the 118th Congress but lost her bid for re-election in 2024. Readers can find her full voting record here.
Alaskan Republicans express general disdain for Peltola. The Alaska GOP keeps a “Peltola Files” tab on their official website to inform Alaskans about ways Peltola failed in Congress. According to the Alaska GOP, some of Peltola’s failures include ignoring President Biden’s mental decline, voting against common-sense border security, voting to reduce penalties for violent crime, failing to show up for various meetings and votes, and promoting transgender ideology.
On the other hand, Alaskan Democrats favor Peltola with some even expressing desire for her to run for governor. Peltola’s earlier campaign for Congress shows her political priorities, which largely align with Democrat values: advocating for Alaskan Natives, supporting universal Pre-K and expanded childcare access, backing unions, fighting high food costs and inflation, investing in infrastructure to connect Alaskan rural communities, protecting social security benefits, expanding abortion access, prioritizing environmental protections, lowering healthcare cost and expanding Medicaid, advocating for LGBTQ+ rights, reviving Native language instruction in schools, advocating for higher teacher pay and higher funding for student retention, and advocating for expanded government programs for Veterans.
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has received much criticism from Alaskan Republicans for her tendency to side with Democrats, including her public support of Peltola. In an interview with the Alaska Beacon, Murkowski offered her opinion of Peltola potentially running for Senate: “If she were to run against my colleague, yeah: It puts me in a difficult spot. But I also think it puts a lot of Alaskans in a difficult spot. Mary, not unlike me, is able to attract support from both sides, right? And granted, it’s early right now. But my sense is that Dan is doing a pretty good job of shoring up this support from not only traditional Republican voters and donors, but from many who kind of view themselves more independently.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is pressing Peltola to take on the challenge. Dedicated to unseating Sullivan, Schumer backed a $600,000 ad campaign smearing Senator Sullivan. Although Peltola has not officially announced her intention to run, it is expected she will do so before the end of the month.
