Republican committees of District 1 in Ketchikan and District 28 in Wasilla now have voted to endorse Nick Begich for Congress. The primary election in Alaska ends on Aug. 20, and thousands of Alaskans have already voted an early absentee ballot.
Both Nick Begich and Nancy Dahlstrom attended a candidate forum in Ketchikan, and the decision by the district was made after the forum ended and the district had a chance to discuss the candidates. Dahlstrom has not received a single endorsement from a district.
Districts that have announced their endorsement for Begich now include 1, 6, 8, 17, 23, 25, 26, 28, 29, 34, and 36.
Also, six of seven Alaska Republican women’s clubs and both of the Young Republican clubs endorsed Begich.
Begich now has the support of 30% of the organized Republican districts — not all districts in Alaska have organized Republican groups. The rest of the districts have made no commitment to any Republican, but 30% represents a huge swath of the state saying they want Nick Begich as he attempts to replace Democrat Mary Peltola in Congress.
The fight is real as the last week before the primary commences. Political action committees from Washington, D.C. are pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars a day into Alaska media buys to try to stop Nick. Ads are everywhere — television, radio, YouTube, and even telephones — to the point of annoyance, according to several Alaskans who say they can’t even watch their favorite shows right now, due to the political ad interruptions.
Begich is outspent by Peltola — and it’s not even close. Although he is the most popular candidate for local donations from Alaskans, the national money that Peltola has obtained is unheard of in Alaska campaign history. The Democrats are working hard to save her in a year when Donald Trump is on the ballot and many Alaskans will be motivated to vote. Peltola’s campaign treasury has millions of dollars to persuade Alaskans to return her to Washington.
