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Mary Peltola Prepares Senate Bid to Challenge Alaska’s Dan Sullivan

Her expected entry would test Alaska’s ranked-choice system, giving Democrats a fresh Senate target.

Overview

  • Axios reporting, echoed by multiple outlets, says Peltola is in the early stages of a campaign with a formal announcement expected later in January.
  • The NRSC has already placed Alaska on its battleground map and prepared lines of attack as Sen. Dan Sullivan readies for a potential Peltola challenge.
  • Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has courted Peltola since 2025, with allied groups spending about $1.5 million last year to soften up Sullivan.
  • Polling analyst Nate Silver says Peltola’s recruitment would shift Democrats’ odds in Alaska from long shot to plausible, while Sen. Lisa Murkowski called such a race very hard.
  • Peltola won two statewide races in 2022 with help from ranked-choice transfers and Murkowski’s support, then lost her 2024 House reelection by just over two points, as Republicans currently hold the Senate 53–47.