Incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), has pledged that she will vote for Democrat House candidate Rep. Mary Peltola (D-AK) over Republican challenger former Gov. Sarah Palin. On Friday, when asked by the Anchorage Daily News, if she would vote for the Democrat, Murkowski replied - “Yeah, I am.”
Likely intended to attract more votes down-ballot, to ultimately defeat Trump-endorsed Senate Republican candidate Kelly Tshibaka, who is leading in the polls by a slim margin, Murkowski’s has said she will vote for a Democrat. This is because Alaska uses the ranked choice voting system, which ultimately affords Democrat voters the opportunity to vote for Murkowski on the second and third ballot levels.
Ranked choice voting in Alaska, was pushed by people who “wanted Lisa to get reelected”, it was purported in a recent video where a Murkowski aide, claimed that the 2020 ballot initiative, supported. In fact, back in October, Former Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK), who is running to represent Alaska’s At-Large Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, reportedly said, in an interview that-
“This is what’s going to elect Democrats and destroy our country before we even know it,” [Palin said of the] “ranked choice voting” [system, warning of a future national impact if allowed to proliferate to other states] “I am just sounding that alarm that it’s this bad.”
-Former Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK)
According to an explanation, published by Breitbart News, Alaska’s ranked-choice general election and open primary system works this way-
“All candidates from all parties appear on the ballot together in the August primary. The top four vote-getters regardless of party then advance to the general election, and their voters are given the opportunity to pick their top choice, as well as their second and third choices. If no candidate in the first round of voters’ first choices gets 50 percent of the vote, the last place candidate’s second choices are distributed across the remaining three candidates to see if someone can get across the majority threshold. If that fails again to produce a majority vote-getter, then a third round is conducted where the third-place candidate’s votes are redistributed according to second choices between the remaining two candidates.”
-Breitbart News
Willing to ally herself with Peltola, a House member since September after a special election, to receive help in her own race from Democrats, Murkowski is supporting her efforts. This alliance by Murkowski, of Peltola, comes as the Republican Party of Alaska voted in March of 2021, to censure Murkowski, asking her to leave the party, after she voted to impeach former President Donald Trump.
However, not only has she refused to leave the party, Murkowski has, instead, doubled-down by consistently working with Democrats on their agenda. Of note is the fact, that in the last two years, she has voted nine times with the Democratic party. Additionally, she has pledged to continue to aid the Democrats’ agenda if she is reelected. A definitely “in your face” position, in opposition to the Republican party, whom she says she represents.
Where her support comes from, however, tells a different story regarding who she is really representing. It is clearly not Alaska.
To the tune of about $9 million, Murkowski also has been backed by Sen. Mitch McConnell’s Senate Leadership Fund, which has heavily contributed to her Senate race. As a result, seven Alaskan Republican committees have issued a public rebuke, of McConnell’s financial influence, in supporting the 21-year incumbent Senator, in opposition to Tshibaka.
Though polling shows Tshibaka is leading, Murkowski has outspent Tshibaka by approximately $7.5 million. Surprisingly, eighty-five percent of Murkowski’s campaign contributions, have come from out-of-state donors. Essentially, this large percentage of money, raised by Murkowski outside the state, calls into question where her interests lie, especially since she is not really supported financially by those in Alaska, but by those of the Washington establishment. Not a good sign for a candidate seeking election to represent her own state.
“There are only two sides to this question. Every man must be for the United States or against it. There can be no neutrals in this war; only patriots and traitors.”
-Stephen Douglas