A proud Yup'ik and the sole statewide member of the US Congress for Alaska, Mary is running for Senate. When she announced, she raised $1.5M and added 500 volunteers in her first day.
Donate via ActBlue »See an interview with candidate for Senate, Mary Peltola. Then hear her address AFT/Alaska — Mary among her peeps, and hear their enthusiasm for her. And Native News outlines the Peltola campaign; note the sheer number of rural and urban volunteers hard at work.
A new survey from Alaska Survey Research (March 19–22) has Mary Peltola leading incumbent MAGA Senator Dan Sullivan for the first time, showing serious strength in both primary and general election match-ups.
The Emily's List endorsement biography is extensive. At 24, Mary was elected to the Alaska state House of Representatives. She served in the legislature for ten years, rebuilding and chairing the Bush Caucus, which helped pass legislation and influence budgets that improved lives in rural Alaska. In 2022, Mary made history by winning Alaska's at-large congressional seat in a special election, becoming the first Alaska Native elected to Congress and the first Democratic woman to represent the state in Washington.
In Congress, Mary helped end 30 years of delays to secure the Willow Oil Project and create good-paying jobs across the state. After five years of delays, she secured a ban on foreign trawled fish. She brought home more than $9 billion for state infrastructure and rural broadband, and hundreds of millions of dollars to renovate the Railbelt Energy Grid and lower energy prices.
The Race
This race represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to flip a U.S. Senate seat in Alaska. Mary has already proven she can win statewide. First elected in the 2022 special election to fill the remainder of Congressman Don Young's term, her victory gave her the title of the Democrat with the most Republican district in Congress. In the 2024 reelection campaign, despite a narrow defeat by 6,722 votes in a state Trump won by 13%, Mary overperformed the top of the ticket by 11% — the highest overperformance in a Trump district in the country.
From Force Multiplier: Peltola beat former Gov. Sarah Palin in a 2022 special election, flipping the seat blue for the first time since the 1970s. She then won a full term that fall, with Alaska's ranked-choice voting system vaulting her past Palin and Nick Begich III. Begich won a rematch in 2024, ousting Peltola by 2% — compared to Trump's 13% margin in the state.
Mary's campaign summarizes recent polling — lots of good news. Alaska Public Media compares fundraising methods for Mary vs. Dan Sullivan, and models excellent voter education on how Alaskan ranked-choice voting works.
On August 18, Mary won the primary outright, taking more votes than any other candidate from either party and advancing to the General Election. The New York Times has the summary, and a companion piece runs down Five Things to Know about Mary Peltola — worth a read even if you think you know her story already.
Then, by judge's order, the Republican side got weirder still: a second Republican named Dan Sullivan — this one Trump-critical, unlike the incumbent — will also appear among the four candidates on the ranked-choice general-election ballot. Let the good times roll.
The Opponent
Mary is running against incumbent Republican Dan Sullivan — a world-class jerk, and we don't say that lightly. Sullivan took nearly $10,000 from Epstein associates, then voted to confirm Blanche — read the details. Politico describes the developing contest. Sullivan's record includes opposition to Trump until he supported Trump, climate change denial, opposition to abortion rights, and opposition to the January 6 investigation. Sullivan opposed Trump during the 2016 presidential race, releasing a statement that said, "We need national leaders who can lead by example" on issues of sexual assault and violence against women. Sullivan added, "The reprehensible revelations about Donald Trump have shown that he can't. Therefore, I am withdrawing my support for his candidacy." Sullivan voted to acquit Trump at the conclusion of his first impeachment trial. During Sullivan's reelection bid, Trump endorsed him, saying Sullivan supported Trump's agenda. A second Republican, also named Dan Sullivan but Trump-critical, has now advanced onto the general-election ballot alongside the incumbent by judge's order — a wrinkle that could confuse voters looking for "the" Sullivan on the ranked-choice ballot. Meanwhile, Mary points out Sullivan has voted for the Iran war 12 times — a corrupt abuse of Alaskans' economic peril.
Latest Updates
- Lawrence O'Donnell learns a lot for the first time in an interview with Mary Peltola. Gob smacked!!! Meanwhile, Mary sent a short Substack note on Dan Sullivan's total willingness to support Trump's warring.
- The Republican side just got weirder: by judge's order, a second Republican named Dan Sullivan — this one Trump-critical — will join incumbent Dan Sullivan among the four candidates on the ranked-choice general election ballot.
- Mary won the August 18 primary, outright — more votes than any other candidate from either party — and advances to the General Election. NYT summary here. Five Things to Know about Mary Peltola, also from the Times, fills in pieces we hadn't seen elsewhere. Here's Mary herself on winning the primary.
Local Organizing
There are 80 Indivisibles in Alaska.
- Indivisible Anchorage
- Alaska Democratic Party
- Volunteer with the campaign
- Native News: the Peltola Plan to tackle Alaska's affordability crisis — the plan itself is linked within the article.
