Murkowski, Peltola Win Their Alaska Races In What Should Be Good News For Salmon Protection

Just before the recent midterm elections, SalmonState endorsed a series of candidates for various Alaska state and federal races that the organization felt were good choices to help protect salmon runs in the Last Frontier. Today’s projected results for Alaska’s lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and one of two Senate seats should bode well those hoping to preserve the state’s fish.

Both these races went down to ranked-choice voting after Peltola (D), who won a runoff to serve the completion of longtime late Rep. Don Young, led former Gov. Sarah Palin and Murkowski was in a neck-and-neck race with fellow Republican Kelly Tshibaka. But both important races were called this afternoon:

Here’s more from Alaska’s News Source:

Murkowski finished with 135,972 votes to Tshibaka’s 117,299 after tabulation. Murkowski held a slight lead in first-place votes going into tabulation and got a boost in the form of votes among those who listed Democratic candidate Pat Chesbro as their first choice. Murkowski received more than 70% of Chesbro’s votes.

Incumbent Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola held off Republicans Nick Begich and former Gov. Sarah Palin for the second time in less than three months, this time holding the seat she first won in August. The sitting representative nearly reached the 50% mark in first-place votes, an improvement over her August showing, and went on to prevail during ranked-choice tabulation.

Peltola finished with 136,893 votes to Palin’s 112,255. Begich, as well as Libertarian candidate Chris Bye, were eliminated during tabulation.

Alaskans for Bristol Bay Action celebrated Alaska’s “Fish Ticket” candidates winning with the following press release:

The “Fish-Ticket” Heads to Washington: Alaskans for Bristol Bay Action Celebrates Sen. Murkowski + Rep. Peltola’s Win

ABBA celebrates historic pro-fish, pro-jobs win; concludes when candidates support salmon fisheries like Bristol Bay, they win. 

(Alaska) — Today, Alaskans for Bristol Bay Action (ABBA) celebrate U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski and U.S. Congresswoman Mary Peltola’s historic wins, calling this a step in the right direction for protecting Bristol Bay from threats like Pebble Mine. 

“Today, we have a lot to celebrate. Lisa Murkowski and Mary Peltola’s wins are a victory for voters and for all of those who rely on Bristol Bay to sustain their way of life. This election proves that when you stand for people, jobs, and fish, you win. Across party lines, people want champions in Congress who will fight for durable, long-lasting protections for Bristol Bay. I look forward to seeing Lisa and Mary stand up for Alaskans in Washington, D.C. and work together to ensure that Bristol Bay– an irreplaceable resource for Alaskans, our economy, and way of life– is protected for generations to come,” said Rick Halford, Senior Advisor to Alaskans for Bristol Bay Action and former State Senate President. 

In the last two months ahead of the election, ABBA launched a comprehensive paid media and GOTV campaign in support of the fish-ticket, Mary Peltola and Lisa Murkowski. The paid media campaign included digital display, pre-roll, and connected TV ad placements. The field and voter contact effort included more than 65,000 voter contact attempts at the doors and on the phones– all complementing and reinforcing the narrative of the fish-ticket media campaign. Additionally, ABBA launched a second television advertisement in the Anchorage and Fairbanks cable and broadcast markets in the last two weeks leading up to the election, highlighting bipartisan support for reelecting U.S. Congresswoman Mary Peltola to the late Congressman Don Young’s seat in Congress.  

Additional information: 

Alaskans for Bristol Bay Action is a 527 political organization supporting elected officials who fight to protect Bristol Bay, its Indigenous Peoples, commercial fishermen, and Alaska’s economy from Pebble Mine. Alaskans for Bristol Bay Action is committed to supporting candidates who will fight for the lasting protections for Bristol Bay that the majority of Alaskans want.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who has sided with the Pebble Mine project in the past, had enough of a lead on Democrat (and SalmonState-endorsed) Lee Gara, to win without tabulating ranked choice votes.