Republican U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski made a surprise endorsement Tuesday in the Alaska governor’s race: Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins.
In a statement emailed to reporters Tuesday afternoon, Murkowski commended the former Sitka state lawmaker’s commitment to bipartisanship. She encouraged “Alaskans of every political stripe” to consider backing the former Sitka state lawmaker.
“Our future is too important to be hamstrung by partisan divisions,” Murkowski said. “Jonathan understands that governing requires listening to people with different perspectives and finding common ground to solve the problems all of us face.”
Polls show Kreiss-Tomkins with a lead over three Republicans in the four-way race to replace term-limited Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy.
Kreiss-Tomkins has made bipartisan cooperation a centerpiece of his campaign. He represented a relatively conservative state House district in the Legislature for a decade. He’s pledged to fill his cabinet with Republicans and independents in addition to Democrats.
Murkowski also has a reputation for crossing party lines. Murkowski previously endorsed Democrat Mary Peltola in 2024 as she ran for reelection to the U.S. House. This year, Murkowski endorsed Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in his reelection campaign despite a challenge from Peltola.
Murkowski is far from the only elected Republican to back Kreiss-Tomkins. He’s also won support from a variety of former Republican state legislators and Sen. Murkowski’s father, former Gov. Frank Murkowski. The elder Murkowski endorsed Kreiss-Tomkins in an Anchorage Daily News op-ed coauthored with two other former governors: independent Bill Walker and Democrat Tony Knowles.
