She’s running: Murkowski starts fundraising for 2022 election cycle

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Sen Lisa Murkowski, with Sen. Susan Collins in the background, in this 2019 file photo.

With Kelly Tshibaka coming out of the gate strong in her highly publicized challenge to Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Alaska’s senior senator has begun campaigning for 2022.

Coming out of dormancy, Murkowski started with two fundraising pitches appearing as emails from Team Lisa, requesting help from Alaskans to help her fight what she calls “scheming radicals.”

Those emails answer the question: Will Murkowski run for Senate in 2022.

“As of this morning, my team and I are NOT on track to meet our End of Quarter financial goals. If we don’t meet these deadlines, I am afraid my campaign will get crushed by radical megadonors,” Murkowski’s pitch reads. “Right now, countless partisan groups from across the country are scheming ways to attack me in the next 20 months. They are working to build enormous dark money war chests to unleash against one of the most bipartisan leaders in Washington. We cannot let their scare tactics win.”

Murkowski continued: “The only way we can stop their lies and enormous budgets is if we work together. Can I count on your support today to help me prepare for the next 20 months of this race? We need to PROTECT Alaska from becoming a political pawn of radical groups. I need you to stand with me.”

In another email fundraising appeal, she used the gender-free “they” pronoun to describe Tshibaka, “… a candidate who puts their own personal agenda first has formally announced they will run against Lisa in 2022.

“Alaska needs an independent Senator who is accountable to the PEOPLE OF ALASKA,” Murkowski wrote.

“Alaska needs a Senator like Lisa because Lisa FIGHTS for Alaskans and Americans. She is committed to bipartisanship, commonsense leadership, and practical solutions to everyday issues. Lisa is NOT afraid to stand up for what’s right.

Murkowski had reportedly raised $131,000 in three months for her 2022 campaign, and she had over $1 million left from her last campaign.

By contrast, Tshibaka raised over $137,000 in two days, according to the New York Times.

When the FEC reports are due later this month, those two numbers will be compared, and both will likely be higher. Numbers like these are often a guarded secret, but the Tshibaka numbers showing up in the New York Times was an interesting strategy. The strength of fundraising is a bellwether of enthusiasm.

It’s certain Murkowski will have an enormous cash and fundraising advantage, and that Tshibaka, who announced for office just three days before the reporting deadline, will initially be the underdog going into the second quarter, which starts April 1.

 On March 16, the Alaska Republican Party voted to censure Murkowski, recruit a primary challenge to her, and prevent her as running as a Republican “to the extent legally permissible.”  The party asked Murkowski to stop running as a Republican, but with Ballot Measure 2, there is no longer a Republican primary in Alaska, and so the party cannot prevent her from running as one, it can only work as a political body to oppose her.

Alaska’s primary election is Aug. 16, 2022, more than 500 days from this writing.

45 COMMENTS

  1. Boy, talk about the pot calling the kettle black. Bring on the Megadonor money for Kelly!

  2. You don’t speak for Alaskans, Murkowski, that’s why you are being attacked.

    You are just another DC Swamp Creature that needs to go away.

  3. “Alaska needs an independent Senator who is accountable to the PEOPLE OF ALASKA,” Murkowski wrote.

    True statement. You are accountable. The accounting has begun. That fence you have been sitting on has cracked, and the PEOPLE OF ALASKA want you gone from office. Let’s do this PEOPLE!

  4. Lisa would know about “scheming ways…” as her write-in campaign was all about that. And FYI, Murk… “bi-partisan” is a door that only opens to the left. Compromising with them (you) isn’t an option any longer.

  5. Murkowski is, and has always been … a joke.

    She doesn’t even write her own ads and could careless about listening to the voices of the people in Alaska. She has, countless times, coward to Schumer, Pelosi and Feinstein. She has voted on the side of politices that doesn’t resonate logical reasoning, and has often used her position to vote by her own biased view.

    Murkowski is not for the people, and she does not represent the State of Alaska.

    VOTE HER OUT.

  6. Many, if not most, of the Political decisions taken by our Senior Senator over the last several years clearly have not been taken based on the thinking of most Alaskan’s especially the big ticket items where she used her vote in ways that made a difference. It is clearly time for the voters of Alaska to say thanks to Lisa but good bye and make a change to a new Senator who will work and serve Alaskans.

  7. Murkowski will be financed by leftist outside donors, she shit on the state and it’s people. If you support her you are doing the same.

  8. It’s sad that Lisa can run as a Republican if she chooses even if the party itself wants nothing to do with her. Many, including myself, donate time and resources, voluntarily to support the party. The word Republican stands for something. You either support that generally or your free to change parties or not be in a party at all. The R party should be able to choose who they support & who can use the name. The party is a private organization. It’s run by votes and representation. So if Lisa runs as a Republican she is hijacking our brand. Stealing it so to speak. She’s stealing from me and every other Republican who chooses voluntarily to be a member of the party.

  9. “Alaska needs an independent Senator who is accountable to the PEOPLE OF ALASKA,” Murkowski wrote. If Lisa really wants to be accountable to the people of Alaska, she needs to resign immediately for the antics and actions taken in just 2021. TIME TO RETIRE LISA.

  10. Hmph…! I have not received the “fighting Senator’s” fundraising email. Yes, I, too, yearn for bipartisanship, although the several Democrat senators who share any of my core values – James Webb (retired) and maybe Joe Manchin, for example – are the black sheep of their party. Commonsense, practical solutions? Do we detect any of this coming from the radical leadership of the Democratic Party? Ha! The self-deluded Senator Bipartisanship is about to be run over by the D.C. Corporatocracy… or, is it the Corruptocracy? Either way, the 2021 situation in D. C. is now way over our senator’s head. Plus, her bipartisanship is best noted in her being the ONLY Republican senator not to vote for Justice Kavanaugh. Well, she may pat herself on the back for that remarkable act, but I have not forgotten that episode of partisan treachery. Be a good sport, Senator M., and retire.

  11. Senator? Murkowski, if you are reading this. Know now that I (unlike you) am a person of my word and as promised to you a few years ago WILL NOT BE voting for you ever again. Kelly Tshibaka WILL get my vote, no questions asked!!!

  12. We need to fight harder on this one and not let her finagle her way back in DC. Wondering if she’s bringing John Tracy up to help again.

  13. Murkowski is super afraid of radical groups populated by Americans who think that the Constitution should be followed as written rather than as “interpreted.”
    These radicals are going to “attack” Lisa by highlighting her actions and voting record…like her vote to impeach Trump.
    They’ll cruelly characterize her as a stooge for the Democrats for her endless willingness to compromise what she says are her conservative beliefs whenever Schumer or Feinstein demand it.
    They’ll claim that she’s a fake Republican who only declared her allegiance to the Republican Party because Daddy Murkowski had to fill his senate seat with someone from the same party.
    And they’ll be correct on all counts.
    Little Lisa betrayed all of us, along with Sullivan and Young, by passively allowing the Democrats to steal the 2020 election.
    They’re all traitors.
    I’d never vote for a Democrat but these three will never get my vote again.
    If Murkowski is our Republican choice in 2022 then my vote is going to “None of the above” …a preferable candidate to this weak little girl.

  14. I’ve seen a lot of comments bagging on murkowski and deservedly so. I am one of them. I will be putting some money where my mouth is whenever possible for Kelly. I hope at least some MRAK readers can/will do the same.

  15. You are the scheming radical Lisa. You sold this state out long ago. Asking for support from the people you betrayed shows how clueless you are. Go work in Pelosi’s office where you belong!

  16. I’m really concerned about everyone running after Kelly as the great savior. Don’t get me wrong, I desperately want to get rid of Lisa but we should learn by now that we need to vet candidates. Reading Kelly’s site and listening to her video displays someone who has spent a career in politics and who prospered in the Obama administration. I don’t see anything about her commitment to the constitution, examples of what she has actually accomplished, or plans/pledges of what she will do.

    We should really learn our lesson one of these days after Cruz, Noem, Graham, Sullivan, Crenshaw, McConnell, Pence…on and on. The party needs to develop an exhaustive process to vet these candidates or we just end up with another Amy Coney Barrett….

  17. Without Murkowski Alaska will become even more irreverent than it is now. For some reason many of the nut jobs that make comments on this site do not seem to understand that it takes years of work by your states representative to gain enough majority in DC to effect change. There are 49 other states and they all want something and the State with the lowest seniority gets nothing. Alaska is a very schizophrenic place with the citizens that pay very low if any taxes, get free money every year, but still want a the feds to pony up the cash. The rest of the country looks at Alaska with billions in their saving accounts and just says you pay your own way.

  18. Nah, Pelosi would encourage her to drift even further left. She just needs to retire. There are more than a few lies in that sample of her ad quoted above in the article. For starters, she’s not been accountable to Alaskans, just Planned non-Parenthood and the leftist alphabet crowd. Time to retire Lisa – thank you for the good you have done, but your last two years have been disastrous for Alaska.

  19. Suzanne, your reply button is not allowing us to reply directly underneath an existing comment…
    Reply to Me: I believe you’re misunderstanding the nature of politics – when you start from the right, all work to get something done requires moving left! Until we elect a huge majority from the right, we can never expect to get what we want, let alone some of it… I’ve met a number of the folks you slam as being fake conservatives – they’re not fakes, they’re not traitors – they’re just doing the best they can under trying circumstances. Lisa, on the other hand, has crossed too many lines – sealing the doom of the Alaska oil economy with her vote for Haaland was the last straw for me. Truck traffic on the Dalton Highway shows the oil cpmpanies have given up and are demobilizing equipment SOUTH. I’ve met Kelly – she will be a superb senator. As for vetting – we’re working on it. Even after vetting, the habit of pragmatic compromise will have the effect of shifting a good conservative left – so don’t blame those who do the vetting at a point in time. Kelly has the guts to hold her ground.

  20. Me, I agree. As soon as I heard Kelly was former DOJ, I got skeptical. I’m not really trusting of someone who has worked for “Just Us”, I don’t know for sure, but her timeline for DOJ seem to around there Eric Holder days of the Obama Administration. I hope Kelly proves me wrong or even better, another challenger that isn’t afraid to stand up for Alaska’s actual values and not San Francisco values.

  21. Alaska We have to Vote Lisa OUT.
    Then We Vote OUT Dan next.
    They both throw Alaska under the bus.
    This has got to Stop, are there, will be no Alaska

  22. This woman failed the bar 4x.

    She hired a firm to help her pass it, then became the rep for the firm.

    The firm was later fined for issuing copies of the actual exam to its clients.

    This lady IS who appears to be.

  23. “Scheming radicals”?!?!?!??? LOL! What a crock of crow turds.

    Did anyone ever notice how much Lisa resembles “Sir Isaac Newton” (the newt in the book “The Tale of Jeremy Fischer” by Beatrix Potter)?

  24. “They are working to build enormous DARK MONEY war chests to unleash against one of the most bipartisan leaders in Washington.” I thought prop. 2 took care of “DARK MONEY” LOL

  25. Reply to Rich:
    I could agree with you but then we’d both be wrong. In case you haven’t noticed, the left doesn’t slide right when the right is in majority and that is what gives them strength. If we ever have fair elections again, I suspect all of the traitors I listed in my post will be booted – many, like Lisa have made deals to stay in office to give us the illusion of democracy. They give high minded speeches when they know that it will have no effect and have supported the growth of government which is the true problem. Having candidates who do not have a strong moral base results in the mess that we now are living in.

  26. Lisa firmly believes!

    Believes she owns the position Frank Murkowski gifted to his little princess.

    It’s the duty of every Alaskan to help her learn the truth.

  27. I hope Murkowski can be defeated but we need to clean up our elections. The Demos like her enough that they’ll help her with ballot harvesting and additional help from the Dominion machines. We know how it will go down…Tshibaka will take a huge initial lead then her votes will stop. Murkowski will get all remaining votes and just creep past for the win. We saw this in the presidential elections and in Georgia.

  28. Lisa is happy now. She’s back in the minority so she can pretend she is a conservative and impress the uninformed voters back home (you know, the ones that like to exercise their right to vote but enter the voting booth with absolutely no clue as to who or what they are actually voting for but think they can figure everything once their in the booth).
    For example, as long as the Senate Republicans were in the minority Lisa was dead set on repeal and replacing Obamacare and campaigned on it. But then once the Republicans gained a majority, then Lisa jumped ship and voted NOT to repeal or replace Obamacare. When questioned as to whether this flip-flop would have a negative impact on Alaskans who voted her in office, she said she wasn’t concerned because she wouldn’t be running again. My eyes rolled back in my head when I heard that one. Of course that was easy for her to say then because she knows voters have a short memory. I would give many similar examples but there are too many to count.
    Lisa’s true colors shine through as a liberal when her vote actually counts and then she lies and pretends she’s a conservative when it doesn’t.

  29. I can’t WAIT to vote against Murky!

    With the advent of Prop 2 (thanks to the Outside Money she complains about) and Ranked Choice Voting, we have to get a MASSIVE Conservative turnout to defeat her.

    It’s just one more example of her playing both side… “I hate outside money in Alaska politics!” but then “yippee, Ranked Choice Voting is going to work to my benefit”.

    It’s never too early to start planning to vote her into oblivion. Mark your calendar and tell ALL your friends and neighbors. Drive them to the polls. Put up a yard sign. DONATE to ridding Alaska of this stench once and for all.

  30. The only dark money coming to Alaska will be in Murkowski’s campaign coffers. She spells out how she feels about Alaskan’s when she refers to us as “scheming radicals” and “radical megadonors”. Kind of reminds me of Hilarious and the “deplorables” label. She did make one statement resembling truth; “Alaska HAS an independent Senator who is accountable to the people of Alaska.” We didn’t elect an independent, but we sure as hell got one, and we’ll be accountable for her reversal of fortune when she gets snubbed at the polls. I can see her changing party affiliation before the election.

  31. She should not be able to run as a Republican. She is not a Republican as she really is a left leaning independent. The state Republican party should be able to decide if candidates can represent the Republican party even if state republicans cannot decide who represents them on the ballot.
    We need to start on repealing rank choice balloting now.
    Ballot measure 2 was a con job that many Alaskans fell for. The scary dark money commercials convinced too many people. The sad thing is Ballot Measure 2 won’t stop dark money but it will stop fair elections. Murky new this was her ticket. Kelly just needs 51% of the vote and rank choice will have no affect.

  32. Lisa hasn’t fought for anything other than her first class tickets. I’ve met her and was told she could not nor would take on the NEA so who exactly is she fighting for? She’s a lost cause and needs to be replaced with a true champion for Alaska first.

  33. Lisa Murkowski is not only Alaskans’ black eye, she’s a disgrace to all Americans. I will be donating all I can to Kelly to get Lisa out of office. I’m so sick of a Democrat in the Republican Senate.

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