Trump Flies 3,400 Miles to Alaska to Help Save a Senate Seat

President Donald Trump traveled more than 3,400 miles to Wasilla, Alaska, on Tuesday to hold a campaign rally. His goal was to help Republican Senator Dan Sullivan win his re-election race against Democrat Mary Peltola. The trip shows how important Alaska has become for Republicans who want to keep control of the U.S. Senate. Wasilla is a small, deeply conservative town and was once home to former governor Sarah Palin.

Republicans have mostly given up on winning Senate races in states like North Carolina and Georgia this fall. That makes Alaska one of the most important battlegrounds left. Senator Sullivan and challenger Mary Peltola, a former Democratic congresswoman, are running very close to each other. Polls in Alaska are known for being hard to trust, which makes the race even harder to predict.

Trump's political team has stopped trying to win over voters in the middle who don't strongly support either party. Instead, they are focused on getting strong Republican supporters to show up at the polls. This strategy is meant to make up for the fact that Democrats seem very motivated to vote this year. Alaska, with its many loyal conservative voters, is seen as the best place to put that plan into action.

Outside a Fred Meyer store in the nearby town of Palmer, a man named Doug Glenn talked about why he still strongly supports Trump. Glenn, 61, owns an aviation company and said fuel costs have been a big issue for his business. He also said that prices for everything have gone up since the covid pandemic. He planned to wear a Trump shirt and bring his whole family to the rally.

Not everyone in the parking lot felt the same way. Just steps away, a 35-year-old woman named Sara Mitchell stood holding a cardboard sign asking for help with food, shelter, and gas. She said she had been living out of her car for three months. Mitchell once liked Trump's style, but she said he — like most politicians — had not really helped people who were struggling. She said she had no plans to vote.

Eric Croft, the chair of the Alaska Democratic Party, was critical of Trump's visit. He pointed out that in 2022, Trump held a rally in Alaska at a larger venue and stumped for two candidates — both of whom lost. Croft also said that Peltola, the Democratic challenger, is tough enough to run her own race without outside help. He suggested Republicans were sending Trump to the most conservative place they could find.

James Muller, a retired political science professor from the University of Alaska at Anchorage, said Alaska's economy often struggles more under Democratic presidents. This is because Alaska depends heavily on things like oil, gas, and fishing — industries that Republicans tend to support more. Because of this, many Alaskans don't blame Trump for rising costs the way voters in other states might. That gives Republicans a natural advantage in federal races here.

Low voter turnout is still a worry for Republicans, though. In recent local elections, only about 4.5 percent of voters in Palmer and 11 percent in Wasilla cast ballots. Michael Bowles, a Republican running for state office, said many conservative Alaskans simply prefer to be left alone and are skeptical of government. He signed up for Trump's rally but wasn't sure he would go — he had his own campaign doors to knock on.