Tshibaka: I’m a candidate for U.S. Senate because I’m running for Alaska

Many of us remember when Alaska was prosperous and safe, and opportunity abounded. That was when my parents moved here. My dad became a union electrician and my mom helped start up Prudhoe Bay. Life was hard at times — my parents were even homeless and living in a tent for a while. But they instilled Alaska values in me, fought their way to the middle class, and changed the course of our family for generations to come.

In the nearly 20 years Lisa Murkowski has been our U.S. senator, our oil and gas jobs have died, our education scores have plummeted and our crime rates have soared. While Lisa Murkowski has voted with the liberal Washington, D.C., insiders, hurting our way of life, we Alaskans have felt forgotten. That is why I am running as a Republican challenger for the U.S. Senate in 2022 — I am running for Alaska.

I want to be a voice for the forgotten Alaskans who feel like Washington, D.C., insiders are not listening to them — for the men and women in oil and gas whose jobs are in jeopardy, for the children who are not getting the education they deserve, and for the women and youth who are victims of sexual abuse and human trafficking.

As your next senator, I will rebuild our economy and fight to protect the jobs of the thousands of Alaskans who work in our energy industry. We need a senator who will defend us against the leftists who want to shut down our oil and gas production and destroy our way of life. We must support and rejuvenate our small businesses and give our young people hope that they can find good jobs here at home, instead of leaving to find employment elsewhere.

I will be a strong voice in opposition to illegal immigration and, as the proud descendant of Americans who fought in virtually every major American conflict from the Revolutionary War to the Vietnam War, I will be a tireless advocate for our military and our veterans. I will fight to preserve our Second Amendment right to bear arms and, as an unapologetically pro-life Alaska conservative, I will be a voice for the unborn. And I’m for America first, always.

We Alaskans have seen what happens when politicians get too comfortable and become part of the D.C. establishment – they forget that the seats they hold belong not to themselves but to the people who elected them. Lisa Murkowski’s father, Frank Murkowski, gave her his Senate seat when he was elected governor. As a result, there has been a Murkowski in the Senate since the first year of the Reagan administration. It is time to replace Lisa with an Alaskan who is not a Washington, D.C., insider politico, and who understands she works for and serves the people of Alaska.

Lisa Murkowski has abandoned us, declaring it with every vote and action she has taken against Alaska’s interests. Consider: She enabled Joe Biden’s radical “green” agenda to end drilling and kill Alaska jobs. She voted to allow illegal immigrants to remain in the country, and she voted against commonsense judges who protect constitutional rights. She voted to keep Obamacare in place, leading to higher costs and fewer health care choices for Alaskans.

The last straw for many was her vote to indict President Donald Trump, even though his term already had expired. For that particular display of poor judgment, she was censured by Alaska’s Republican Party.

Alaskans will never have to wonder where my loyalties and interests are: They are right here.

I was born and raised Alaskan. I am not a senator’s daughter — I watched my parents struggle to make their mortgage payments for years, much like how countless Alaskans are struggling today. After graduating from Steller Secondary School in Anchorage, I fought to be first in my family to pursue a college degree and attend law school. Then I went to work exposing fraud and abuse in government, improving outcomes and results, and saving taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.

I am grateful to Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who appointed me Commissioner of the Department of Administration, where I served the people of Alaska from January 2019 until I stepped down when I decided to run. And I thank God for my wonderful husband, Niki, and our five beautiful children, who strongly support me in this decision.

The coming election presents a unique opportunity to chart a new course for Alaska. We deserve a senator who remembers us, and who believes the Senate seat she holds is of, by, and for the people of Alaska.

It is time we had a U.S. senator who represents Alaska to Washington, D.C., rather than one who represents D.C. insiders to Alaska.

Kelly Tshibaka is a Republican candidate for the United States Senate in Alaska.

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