Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka raised $1.8 million in 2021, has over $630,000 cash on hand for her battle with Murkowski

By
Suzanne Downing
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23
741

Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Kelly Tshibaka raised over $1.8 million in 2021. That is the number she’ll file with the Federal Election Commission today.

At this point in Tshibaka’s campaign against Sen. Lisa Murkowski, the upstart candidate has raised more than any other candidate opposing Murkowski had raised in the entirety of the 2016 election cycle, and it appears she has raised more than any other candidate opposing Murkowski at this stage in 2010.

Tshibaka had nine months to raise the funds, as she filed for office on March 29, 2021. Fifty-five percent of her donations in 2021 came from Alaskans, and in the fourth quarter that surged to 64 percent.

Tshibaka has been running hard since announcing her candidacy, and has hired a professional campaign team for in-state and out-of-state help, which means she has also spent significant funds to help her with name recognition. But she’s scheduled a fundraiser with former President Donald Trump in mid-February, and he is a powerful fundraiser. She started this year with $630,000 in the bank.

Murkowski, as all federal candidates must, will also announce her final donation totals today to the Federal Election Commission, and her funds are likely to dwarf those of Tshibaka. One of the most powerful women in Washington, D.C., Murkowski ended the third quarter with more than $3.2 million cash on hand in her campaign account, after raising $4,571,976 in the first three quarters and spending over $1.4 million. Murkowski has significant fundraising prowess both in and outside Alaska, with many of her donors are writing checks over $1,000. The individual contribution limit for federal candidates is $2,900 for the primary and $2,900 for the general.

This race is made more interesting by the fact that the Alaska Republican Party voted overwhelmingly to endorse Tshibaka as its choice for Senate, and voted decisively to censure Murkowski and ask her to leave the party and not run as a Republican, which she has not yet done.

The Alaska Democratic Party has not yet found a candidate that it can convince to enter the race. The deadline is June 1 at 5 pm for the Aug. 16 primary, which will be an open primary with all candidates on the same ballot. The party has attempted to lure state Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson into the race, but there are few signs she is going to take that risk at her age, 68. Terms for Senate are six years, which would mean she would not have time to build seniority, with takes several six-year terms.

23 COMMENTS

  1. Go Kelly! We must rid Alaska of the communist sympathizer Murkowski. All her dark money isn’t going to save her. Kelly is MAGA and America is sick of corrupt politicians like Murkowski who slobbers all over anti-American politicians like Chuck Schumer.

  2. Congratulations Kelly and thank you Alaskans. Time for change is at hand research her for yourself and you will find integrity of the people for the people by the people. Her accomplishments will be for the citizens and our state. As citizens our duty is to vote wise please contact and research Kelly she is awesome.

  3. Money coming your way, Kelly. Frankie and I are converting debenture bonds to cash and I’m selling off some of my Royal jewelry. Leeza only THINKS she is entitled to it.

      • JG:
        Sends lots of $$$ to Kelly T. Leeza is already trying to fleece me, by insisting on pre-inheritance advances. She’s a little con artist, not the good Catholic girl we thought we raised.

  4. I cannot tell you the disgust I have for Murkowski. If Kelly T. was not running, and I had a choice between Princess Lisa and Dr. Al Gross (or boy wonder Mark Begich), I would vote for the leftists/statist/marxist democrat.
    .
    Have already donated to Kelly’s campaign, and will continue to support her throughout the campaign.

  5. It’s going to be interesting to see the vote patterns by party if there is no Democrat challenger. Will registered Democrats actually bother to vote in this race- especially with the new RCV system? For all the grief Murkowski gets from the right, she’s hardly someone who excites left-wingers. But she’ll need strong turnout from them to win this time around.

    • The lack of a Democrat might be the point. It will ensure the RINOs and the Dems vote for Lisa. Almost an assured win.

      • In 2016 there were 271,679 undeclared and non partisan voters. This number increased to 340,606 in 2020. The Republicans gained around 2000 voters in this period 140287 to 142266.
        This shows people are not really concerned who the Republican Party endorses. This is also reflected in the passing of ranked choice voters.
        I have a hard time seeing all the U and N voters voting for Kelly. All they no about her is she worked here for two years and tried to make getting a drivers license more expensive.
        It is really sad the money that is going to be wasted in this election.

  6. I’d still like to know what role kelly played in the creation or promotion of the patriot act. people must wake up and realize the war on terror has come home(jan.6) and its all run though the patriot act.

  7. I really don’t think that it is going to be much of a battle. Princess Lisa has alienated SO many Alaskans over the past few years since her last election that her support will be mainly just the Anchorage leftists and the plantation Bush voters, and they are collectively not enough to push her over the top.

  8. The new voting system was designed to save Murkowski’s bacon. Don’t look for the Democrat Party to post even a token candidate. Daddy’s little princess is their darling.

    TWO monumental tasks face Alaskans:

    1. Send Lisa back to George Soros in tears.
    2. Bring back fair, honest and easy-to-understand elections.

  9. Little Lisa can spend all she can make promises all day long and lie about how she is for Alaska but myself and everyone I know can’t wait to vote against her.

  10. Let me dust off my crystal ball. With our Ranked Choice Voting system, instead of two party primaries in August, all Senate candidates will be on one ballot. The four candidates who receive the most votes will advance to the general election, regardless of party affiliation.
    .
    So my crystal ball tells me democrats will flood to the polls and vote as their well organized PACs tell them to. They will vote for their guy, and then two people less likely to win than Kelly in their Ranked Choices. The total of their fudge votes for down-ballot conservatives (or even write-ins for Mickey Mouse) will push Kelly off the top-four list.
    .
    And it will all be legal and above board, because idiot Alaskans voted in Ranked Choice Voting.

      • Yes. Please do.
        .
        The candidates should be open about who is funding their campaign. And, I think you might find out the conservatives are receiving less out of state funding than the liberals. Note, I did not say the political parties, I said conservative/liberals.

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