Republican Hopefuls Kelly Tshibaka And Lisa Murkowski Advance In Race

lisa murkowski
lisa murkowski

Centrist Republican, Lisa Murkowski, the sitting Senator from Alaska seeking a 4th term, and her close rival Kelly Tshibaka, both progressed to the next round of the general election in the primary race for Senator. They both earned sufficient votes to move up under the new open primary system in Alaska.

Lisa Murkowski is hopeful of containing an expected backlash from conservatives riled over her support of convicting disgraced former president Trump for his role in the January 6 riots and the Capitol attack.

After around half the votes were declared, both Lisa Murkowski and Kelly Tshibaka were abreast at 40% of the votes each. Their closest rival had only single-digit support. The ballot counting was on. Under the top 4 system followed by Alaska, two more candidates will advance, though it remains unclear which other two will finally go through to the next round.

Lisa Murkowski The Only Senator To Vote To Impeach Trump

The 65-year-old Lisa Murkowski is the sole sitting Senator who chose to convict Trump in the trial to impeach him. The senior senator has been open in her frustration with Trump and the hold he still retains over the GOP. But she has maintained standing behind the campaign arm of the GOP.

Lisa Murkowski has also crossed over repeatedly to support bipartisan compromises and also Democratic nominees. It includes her support for Justice Ketanji B. Jackson as a judge on the Supreme Court. She was also supportive of the approval of Interior secretary, Deb Haaland. Ms. Murkowski is also one of just 2 Republican Senators who have supported the right to abortion and have opposed the decision by the top court to overturn the 50-year-old Roe v. Wade. The move rejected the constitutional protection afforded automatically for abortions.

Lisa Murkowski will use her bipartisan credentials and achievements during her tenure to win over Alaskan voters. She has been instrumental in steering billions to the state through her role on the Senate Appropriations Committee and had an active and leading role in passing the $1 trillion infrastructure law, another bipartisan legacy.