Former Rep. Mary Peltola’s (D-AK) Senate campaign made clear this week that it wants nothing to do with former Vice President Kamala Harris’s message of support.
On Wednesday, Harris’s Fight for the People PAC sent an email urging supporters to “stand behind Mary,” The New York Times reported. It called the Alaska contest a “must-win race” for Democrats hoping to retake the Senate and declared, “If there’s anyone who can flip Alaska and secure the Senate majority for Democrats — it’s Mary.” The message linked to a page asking donors to split contributions between Peltola’s campaign and Harris’s own committee.
Peltola’s team responded immediately. The campaign said it had not approved the email and had no knowledge of it before it went out.
“Mary isn’t seeking endorsements from anyone from the Lower 48 — her focus is and always will be Alaska,” the statement read, citing support she has received from several Alaska labor groups.
Peltola did not endorse Harris in 2024.
Peltola, a former congresswoman, is running against incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK). Limited polling thus far shows the race to be competitive, but Peltola would need to far outperform Harris’s 2024 showing in the state: a 13-point loss.
Republicans moved fast to connect the two. Nick Puglia, spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said Peltola had worked “hand in hand with Kamala Harris to put Alaska last, so it’s no surprise that Harris is backing Peltola.”
Nate Adams, speaking for Sullivan’s campaign, added, “No matter how hard Mary Peltola tries to hide from the endorsement, Alaskans can see exactly whose team she and Kamala Harris are on.”
This was not the first time Harris’s PAC has pushed Peltola. On January 12, the day Peltola announced her candidacy, the same group sent a similar appeal that read, “This is the race that may determine control of the Senate.” The latest message emerged just days before Alaska’s August 18 nonpartisan primary. Under Alaska’s odd voting system, the top four finishers in the primary advance to November, regardless of party.
State Representative Rebecca Himschoot, an independent, called the email “really dumb” and said Harris was “riding Mary Peltola’s coattails.” Himschoot noted that Harris is not currently running for anything and “didn’t do well here to begin with.” She described the overall swarm of outside messaging in the race as “tremendously manipulative.”
Harris has left the door open for another presidential run in 2028.
Alaska has not sent a Democrat to the Senate in nearly two decades. Most voters in the state are politically unaffiliated. Senator Lisa Murkowski, a Republican who often crosses party lines to vote with Democrats, won re-election in 2022 by defeating a Trump-backed challenger.
Another candidate named Dan Sullivan, a former elementary school teacher with no prior political experience, is also on the ballot. Republicans have accused the other Dan Sullivan of working with Democrats and Peltola’s campaign to confuse voters and siphon support from incumbent Sen. Sullivan. The Peltola campaign has denied any coordination. The second Sullivan successfully fought in court to remain on the ballot after election officials tried to remove him.
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