A second Republican has joined the race in Alaska to challenge Rep. Mary S. Peltola, a popular Democrat who holds the state’s sole seat in the House of Representatives.
Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, who was elected last year, is running against Ms. Peltola, who became the first Alaska Native woman ever elected to Congress after defeating former Gov. Sarah Palin in two 2022 elections. Ms. Peltola’s first victory over Ms. Palin, in a special election following the death of Alaska’s former congressman, Don Young, shifted the seat to Democrats for the first time in 50 years.
Her second victory, in the November midterm elections, was a political blow to Ms. Palin, once considered a standard-bearer in the national Republican Party.
Ms. Dahlstrom, a former state representative and former commissioner of the state Department of Corrections, is the second Republican to enter the House race, following Nick Begich III. The scion of a prominent liberal political family in Alaska, Mr. Begich finished third in previous races against Ms. Peltola.
“Alaska needs a proven strong fighter,” Ms. Dahlstrom said in a speech statement announcing her candidacy and criticism of President Biden. She vowed that if elected to the House of Representatives, she would “stop Biden and extreme liberals from ruining our future.”
The House Republican campaign arm turned this seat into a seat priority objective in 2024. Will Reinert, a spokesperson for the group, said in a statement about Xformerly known as Twitter, that Ms. Dahlstrom “is a top recruit who will win this state won by Trump.”
Ms. Peltola’s election to a full term with 55 percent of the vote last November — after playing up her bipartisan credentials and local issues during the campaign — demonstrated her ability to keep her seat despite political headwinds. Alaska has long been a red state, and former President Donald J. Trump won Alaska handily in the 2020 election. Mr. Young, a Republican who was one of the longest-serving members of the House of Representatives, won reelection that year with 54 percent of the vote.
But Ms. Peltola’s popularity, despite their advantages, will still pose a significant obstacle for Republicans. The race was competitive but skewed towards Ms Peltola, according to an analysis by the Cook Political Report earlier this year.
Activists and former Republican candidates in the state, including Mrs. Palinare also trying to repeal the state’s recently passed laws ranked choice voting system. They argue that the system can ensure a Democrat wins even if a majority of voters choose a Republican on the first ballot. Ms. Peltola was the most popular choice on the first ballot in both of her previous races, but she did not win an outright majority until the second round.