Mary Peltola is running for the U.S. Senate in Alaska, formally stepping into a race that could turn one of the nation’s reddest states into an unexpected battleground.
The Democrat announced her bid on Monday in a video message that pulled no punches, saying Washington has been blind to life on the edges of the country and the struggles of people who simply want to feed their families and keep their traditions alive, according to Associated Press reporting .
In that announcement, Peltola didn’t start with party slogans or polls. She spoke plainly about the cost of living and common frustrations.
“It’s not just that politicians in D.C. don’t care that we’re paying $17 for a gallon of milk in rural Alaska,” she said. “They don’t even believe us. They’re more focused on their stock portfolios than our bank accounts.”
My name is Mary Peltola, and I’m running for U.S. Senate to fight for fish, family, and freedom – and that begins with fixing the rigged system in DC that’s shutting down Alaska.
We need systemic change if we’re going to fill our homes with abundance again. pic.twitter.com/pLnr4GLd9k
— Mary Peltola (@MaryPeltola) January 12, 2026
That kind of message has roots in her own life. Peltola is Yup’ik, a mother of seven and a grandmother. She grew up amidst salmon runs and fishing traditions that tie food and community together, places and people too often left out of the conversations in Washington. That background has long shaped her politics and her appeal in Alaska.
Her campaign slogan remains familiar: “Fish, family, and freedom.” In the launch video, she tied her work drying fish to the real work of Alaskans who steel themselves through long winters, high prices, and a political system that feels distant at best .
Peltola won her at-large House seat in 2022 with that message, becoming the first Alaska Native elected to Congress. She lost her re-election bid in 2024 by a narrow margin in a year when Republicans carried the state decisively, but her ability to outperform her party in a red landscape is something Democrats are hoping will translate in a Senate race as well .
Today is an important day for our state — Mary Peltola has officially announced that she is running for Senate!! pic.twitter.com/tyhyI1izsW
— The Alaska Democratic Party (@TheAlaskaDems) January 12, 2026
Her opponent will be Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, a two-term incumbent and former Marine whose tenure has been marked by strong alignment with national GOP priorities. Alaska hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since 1994, but Peltola’s roots and reputation give her a foothold few other Democrats would have.
“There is no group of people more ready to save ourselves than Alaskans,” she said in the video, invoking past leaders like the late Sen. Ted Stevens and Rep. Don Young, both Republicans who once placed local needs above party lines.
That history matters in a state where independent-minded voters and ranked-choice voting can reward candidates who don’t fit neatly into partisan boxes. Alaska’s primary on Aug. 18 will be open to all contenders, and the top four will move on to the general election.
Now that Mary Peltola enters the US Senate race in Alaska. This race becomes a tossup. Alaska has been consistently trending towards the Democratic Party.
My forecast model currently has Alaska at R+0.6. https://t.co/p4VpnXkn25 pic.twitter.com/N1mMm1Q8ks
— Theo (@The0_o7) January 12, 2026
Peltola’s pitch isn’t just about nostalgia or identity. It’s rooted in bread-and-butter issues — groceries, fuel costs, housing — and a palpable frustration with Washington’s disconnect from the realities outside the Lower 48.
Her campaign video echoed that.
“Systemic change is the only way to bring down grocery costs, save our fisheries, lower energy prices and build new housing Alaskans can afford,” she said.
Political observers see her as different from a typical Democratic recruit. She has a track record of winning in a state where national leaders often walk on eggshells. Her appeal spans tribal communities, fishermen, small-town families and pragmatic independents, the very voters who shrug off party labels when survival is on the line.
Can’t wait for Peltola to run this back for Senate this year pic.twitter.com/JD1HLoizKV
— BeshearStan (@BeshearStan) January 12, 2026
Sullivan will not be easy to beat. He won his last race by double digits and holds strong institutional support. But Peltola’s message, grounded in daily life rather than D.C. rhetoric, might resonate where it matters most: at the checkout line, at the fish racks, around kitchen tables in towns where the price of milk is more than a headline, and the idea of “freedom” still means feeding your family with dignity.
The race isn’t a slam dunk, but it’s far from a generic campaign. And in Alaska, where independence runs deep, that might be exactly the point.
