Mary Peltola is challenging Sen. Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s 2026 Senate race, a contest that could help determine Senate control. Her campaign dismissed New York Times reports of slurs and staffers’ claim she shoved an aide, citing grief after her husband and mother died in 2023.
Polling was mixed. An AARP survey released Sept. 17, based on 800 likely voters surveyed Sept. 8–11, put Peltola ahead 46%–41%; its ranked-choice simulation showed a 53%–47% lead (margin of error: ±3.5 points). RealClearPolitics’ Friday average was 50.3% for Peltola and 48% for Sullivan, while a Sept. 14–17 co/efficient poll put Sullivan ahead 48%–46% and Rasmussen put both at 39%. Prediction markets Kalshi and Polymarket gave Peltola 74% and 73% chances of winning, respectively, as of Friday.
Campaign spokesperson Harry Child said Peltola was parenting children through their grief while serving full time in the House and running a competitive reelection campaign when the deaths occurred. Her husband, Eugene “Buzzy” Peltola Jr., worked in wildlife management and served as Alaska regional director for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He died in a Sept. 12, 2023, plane crash; the NTSB concluded the rented aircraft was over its allowed weight.
