ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski crossed party lines on Tuesday to endorse Democratic nominee Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins in the Alaska governor’s race, rejecting three Republican contenders, including one backed by former President Donald Trump.
The announcement arrived just one week ahead of Election Day as Kreiss-Tomkins, a former state representative from Sitka, leads a fractured field under Alaska’s ranked choice voting system. The Democrat is competing against three Republicans: Trump-backed candidate Bernadette Wilson, former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, and former state Attorney General Treg Taylor to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy.
In an interview with Anchorage NBC affiliate KTUU, Murkowski described Kreiss-Tomkins as a commonsense leader with the ability to bridge partisan divides. She argued that the Republican contenders in the race were overly partisan and emphasized that Alaska needs a governor who can collaborate with state lawmakers to help the federal delegation succeed in Washington.
“JKT is a young Alaskan with a view and a perspective that I think Alaska needs right now — a freshness of energy, a commonsense guy who has a known ability to be working together,” Murkowski said.
Murkowski also criticized Dunleavy’s outgoing administration, telling KTUU that state officials had left federal funds on the table and mismanaged opportunities, pointing specifically to challenges with the Alaska Marine Highway System.
A growing bipartisan coalition
Kreiss-Tomkins said in a campaign news release that he was honored to receive Murkowski’s endorsement. He represented a conservative state House district for a decade and has pledged to appoint Republicans and independents to his cabinet alongside Democrats.
Murkowski is not the only high-profile Alaska Republican backing Kreiss-Tomkins. Her father, former Gov. and U.S. Sen. Frank Murkowski, also endorsed the Democrat on Tuesday in an Anchorage Daily News op-ed coauthored with two other former governors: Democrat Tony Knowles and independent Bill Walker. Former Republican governors Sarah Palin and Sean Parnell have not endorsed a candidate in the race.
Polling indicates that Kreiss-Tomkins leads the contest. A September 2026 New York Times/Siena poll placed Kreiss-Tomkins at about 40 percent among likely Alaska voters, followed by Wilson at 20 percent, Bronson at 15 percent, and Taylor at 11 percent. The NBC News Decision Desk currently rates the race as leaning Democratic.
GOP rivals push back
The Republican candidates offered contrasting reactions to Murkowski’s announcement. Wilson dismissed the move, accusing Murkowski of abandoning Alaska values and criticizing Kreiss-Tomkins’ fiscal policies.
Taylor voiced disappointment that the senator crossed party lines, saying Alaskans deserve leadership focused on fiscal discipline and protecting the state’s Permanent Fund dividend rather than instituting new taxes. Bronson took a more measured tone, stating that Murkowski was entitled to make her own endorsement choices while maintaining that his focus remained directly on serving voters.
Trump endorsed Wilson on Oct. 13 ahead of a rally in Wasilla, where Dunleavy encouraged voters to rank all three Republican candidates to avoid surrendering the seat. Trump has repeatedly clashed with Murkowski, criticizing her votes and recently referring to her on social media as the “Republicans’ Worst Senator, by far.” Murkowski previously backed Democrat Mary Peltola in her 2024 House reelection bid, though she has endorsed fellow Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in his contested reelection campaign this year.
Voters across Alaska will cast their ranked choice ballots on Tuesday to determine who will lead the state for the next four years.
