Alaska Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola has postponed a series of campaign events this week after she and her family sustained minor injuries in a car accident in Anchorage on Saturday night. The collision occurred as Peltola and her family were traveling to the Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Banquet, according to a statement released by her campaign on Sunday.
Campaign manager Cheryl Bruce stated that Peltola and her family received medical attention following the crash and are currently in good spirits. However, acting on the advice of medical professionals, the candidate has stepped away from the campaign trail temporarily to recover, forcing the rescheduling of upcoming events in Fairbanks and Bethel for later in the week.
Bruce noted that the candidate expressed disappointment over the disruption, which delays the launch of her Alaska Always Tour with only nine days remaining before the midterm elections. Peltola is eager to resume her schedule to connect with voters regarding her campaign platform.
Peltola is currently locked in a closely contested race against Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan, holding a narrow lead in recent polling. The political landscape in Alaska remains complex, particularly given that Donald Trump carried the state by 13 percentage points in 2024, a margin that would traditionally favor Republican candidates.
The contest has seen additional complications surrounding ballot access. A third candidate sharing a similar name, Daniel J. Sullivan, entered the race, raising concerns about potential vote-splitting with the Republican incumbent. State election officials initially removed the independent candidate from the ballot after Republicans argued he was not running in good faith and possessed ties to a Democratic strategist. That decision was subsequently overturned by a judge, and Alaska’s highest court upheld the ruling.
Amid these developments, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit on Thursday following instructions from Trump to preemptively block Alaska from certifying its election results if the incumbent narrowly loses the contest.
