Overview:
President Donald Trump plans to campaign for Sen. Dan Sullivan as Democrat Mary Peltola gains momentum in Alaska’s increasingly competitive Senate race.
Native Vote 2026
With Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mary Peltola (Yup’ik) showing strong poll numbers in Alaska, President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he is going to Alaska to help incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan in his reelection bid in the November general election.
Alaska is known as a red state. The last time Alaska elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate was in 2008, when Mark Begich was elected.
However, Peltola is a proven formidable candidate, who came in first in a four-way primary race last month. Even before the primary, the Cook Political Report moved the Alaska Senate race to a toss-up on July 1, 2026. Several polls have shown Peltola with a lead over Sullivan.
In the 2024 presidential race, Trump defeated Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris by 11.1 percentage points, winning 54.5% of the vote.
Responding to a Native News Online inquiry about Trump’s visit to help Sullivan, a spokesperson for Alaskans for Mary said:
“Mary is an independent voice who will work with anyone to put Alaska first.”
“Dan Sullivan has spent years putting himself first and Alaska last – lining his own pockets while his price-hiking agenda harms Alaskans. From tripling his wealth while in the U.S. Senate, to enjoying a lavish lifestyle on the donor dime, to his steadfast loyalty to special interests at the expense of Alaskans – Sullivan has sold out the state at every turn. Sullivan has put Alaska last every day in DC, and he will answer for his indefensible record at the ballot box this November,” an Alaska Democratic Party spokesperson said to Native News Online.
The campaign also cited Peltola’s bi-partisan approach while she was a member of Congress. In August 2022, Peltola beat former Alaska governor and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Peltola became the first Native Alaskan ever elected to Congress.
She gained the endorsement of Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), the chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, who crossed party lines to support Peltola in November 2022.
Whether a visit by Trump will help Sullivan is up for debate. Trump’s approval rating is currently 39% in the state.
