Democrats got the kind of news they’ve been waiting for out of Alaska on Monday, when former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola announced she’s running for the Senate.
In a cycle with few obvious openings, her entry gives the party a credible chance to compete in a state it hasn’t seriously contended at the Senate level in years.
Peltola served a term and a half as Alaska’s at-large House member, first winning a 2022 special election before securing a full term that fall. She narrowly lost reelection in 2024 by about three points—even as President Donald Trump carried the state by about 13.
Democrats see that split as evidence of her crossover appeal—and a reason to believe Alaska could again defy national trends.
Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, rips up a piece of paper that had plans from the Biden administration during news conference at the Pump Station 1 on on June 2, on the prodigious North Slope.
This time, she’ll take on Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, who is seeking a third term. Peltola had also weighed a run for governor, a seat that will open due to term limits, but national Democrats quietly pushed her toward the Senate instead. With Republicans holding a 53–47 edge and the 2026 map offering few friendly targets, party leaders are eager to compete anywhere the terrain looks even slightly forgiving.
In her launch video, Peltola focused on kitchen-table issues like the cost of living and the health of the state’s fishing industry, reviving her House-era slogan—“fish, family and freedom”—and calling for congressional term limits.
“Growing up, Alaska was a place of abundance. Now, we have scarcity,” Peltola said. “The salmon, large game, and migratory birds that used to fill our freezers are harder to find. So we buy more groceries, with crushing prices.”
Her decision caps a year of aggressive recruiting by Senate Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Kirsten Gillibrand. Favored candidates are now running in North Carolina, Maine, and Ohio, with Democrats nudging contenders in several other states—even as some of those races head toward primaries.
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Until recently, it wasn’t clear which lane Peltola would choose. She was seen as a top-tier option for governor or a House comeback. Instead, she’s opted for the longer shot. Under Alaska’s nonpartisan primary system, which sends the top four vote-getters to the general election, Peltola is expected to advance without much trouble.
The broader math, though, remains unforgiving. To win back the Senate, Democrats must defend a string of battleground seats and flip at least four currently held by Republicans.
Some strategists see room for movement at the margins. Former Sen. Sherrod Brown is expected to keep Ohio competitive, while Peltola’s crossover appeal and statewide profile could give Democrats a chance to make Alaska more than an afterthought.
Former Sen. Sherrod Brown is expected to keep Ohio competitive.
Her campaign leans heavily on Alaska’s independent streak. In the video, Peltola links her experience drying fish to what she describes as a broader sense of loss among Alaskans who’ve watched abundance give way to scarcity as Washington looks elsewhere.
She also invokes former Sen. Ted Stevens and Rep. Don Young, Republicans she casts as models of putting the state over party.
“No one from the Lower 48 is coming to save us, but I know this in my bones, there is no group of people more ready to save ourselves than Alaskans,” she says. “Ted Stevens often said, ‘To hell with politics, put Alaska first.’ It’s about time Alaskans teach the rest of the country what Alaska First and, really, America First looks like.”
Peltola has also begun sharpening her critique of Sullivan, arguing that he has aligned with a national Republican agenda that doesn’t always fit Alaska, including backing cuts to public media stations relied on by remote communities.
Democratic groups have already begun defining the race. A Senate Majority PAC-aligned organization last month released a “Grinch Who Stole Christmas”–themed ad accusing Sullivan of benefiting from Trump-backed budget cuts, and has spent $1 million attacking him over costs and health care, CNN reports.
Sullivan, already armed with Trump’s endorsement, is preparing for a serious contest. His campaign reported nearly $4.8 million cash on hand as of Sept. 30. He first won office in 2014 by narrowly defeating Democrat Mark Begich, then cruised to reelection in 2020.
In a statement to NBC News, Sullivan spokesperson Nate Adams said the senator “has spent years delivering real results for Alaska,” while arguing Peltola failed to pass legislation during her House tenure.
Even so, Democrats have already spent $3.1 million on ads in the race, according to AdImpact—an early sign that, in a favorable midterm environment, Alaska may no longer be entirely out of reach.
