Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom drops out of U.S. House race

Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom said Friday that she is withdrawing from the race for the state’s lone U.S. House seat.

In votes tallied so far from Tuesday’s primary election, Dahlstrom, a Republican, was in third with just less than 20% of the vote behind incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, who had 50%, and Republican Nick Begich III, who was in second with 27%.

“I entered this race because Alaskans deserve better representation than what we have received from Mary Peltola in Washington. We know that Mary Peltola certainly isn’t up to the challenge. She has shown this. At this time, the best thing I can do to see that goal realized is to withdraw my name from the general election ballot and end my campaign,” she said in a prepared statement Friday morning.

Dahlstrom did not endorse Begich in her statement. The Dahlstrom campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday morning.

In a statement posted on social media, Begich thanked Dahlstrom for “running a strong campaign” and “for her continued service to Alaska.”

“Today we move forward unified in the effort to replace Mary Peltola, who has proven by her alignment with the left that she is not the moderate she claimed to be,” Begich continued. “I look forward to continuing to travel Alaska to earn your support and take Alaska’s incredible story to our nation’s capital. North, to the Future.”

Begich is a businessman who first ran for Congress in 2022, coming in third behind Peltola and former Gov. Sarah Palin. Begich is a member of a prominent family of Alaska Democrats. His grandfather, Nick Begich I, was elected to Alaska’s U.S. House seat as a Democrat in 1972. His uncle, Mark Begich, is a Democrat who served as U.S. senator between 2009 and 2015.

Peltola’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

National Republican groups poured millions of dollars into a campaign supporting Dahlstrom in recent weeks, running ads on her behalf and contributing to her campaign. Dahlstrom was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. In his endorsement message, Trump criticized Begich, saying Begich “has Democrat tendencies” and that “he refused to get out of this race last time, which caused the Republicans to lose this important seat.”

The National Republican Congressional Committee had supported Dahlstrom, but by Friday morning, the NRCC had shifted to backing Begich as a “great choice” for Alaska.

“Nancy Dahlstrom has led a life of service and I want to thank her for stepping into the arena this year. Her selfless decision today puts Alaskans and the team first, allowing voters to unite around a single Republican,” said Richard Hudson, chair of the NRCC, in a prepared statement.

Dahlstrom, who has served as lieutenant governor since 2022 and previously served as commissioner of the Alaska Department of Corrections, had also been endorsed by Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy and U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, among other national GOP figures. It was not immediately clear if they would back another candidate in the race.

Under Alaska’s open primary and ranked choice voting system, the top four vote-getters in the primary advance to the general election in November. Dahlstrom’s withdrawal means that Peltola, Begich, little-known Republican Matthew Salisbury and Alaska Independence Party candidate John Wayne Howe look set to appear on the general election ballot.

Salisbury had 0.62% of votes counted so far. Howe has 0.57%. Thousands of uncounted by-mail ballots could shift results, and see different third- or fourth-place candidates advance to the general election.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.