Democrat Mary Peltula, a former Alaska congresswoman, is competing against Republican Dan Sullivan in the Senate race.

JUNE, Alaska (AP) — Former Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola said Monday she will challenge Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in this year’s midterm elections, vowing to change the establishment to make life more affordable for Alaskans.

“Life is hard here, and we know we have to take care of each other,” Beltola said in a video announcement.

Peltula, a Yup’ik, was the first Alaskan to serve in Congress. She won the special and regular elections in 2022, defeating a field that included former Republican Gov. Sarah Palin. In 2024, she lost to Republican Nick Begich, who was also running in 2022.

Peltola’s time in Congress was marked by tragedy. Her mother died in 2023, and her husband died in a plane crash later that year.

Peltola focused on local concerns in her announcement, saying Alaska’s future depends on fixing “the corrupt system in D.C. that shuts Alaska down while politicians build their own nests.”

She said the salmon and migratory birds that once filled the refrigerators of Alaska’s indigenous subsistence fishermen are now harder to find, forcing families living far from the state’s limited road system to rely on grocery stores for expensive staples, driven by rising transportation costs.

“It’s not just that politicians in D.C. don’t care that we pay $17 for a gallon of milk in rural Alaska,” she said. “They don’t even believe us. They are more focused on their stock portfolios than our bank accounts.”

Although Democrats are optimistic about picking up seats in this year’s midterm elections, Alaska could be a tough political district. Sullivan, a former state attorney general and natural resources commissioner, defeated the state’s last Democratic senator in 2014.

The Republican National Committee said that Peltola became “a rubber stamp for the far left the moment she arrived in Washington.”

He watches: Representative-elect Mary Peltola talks about her win in Alaska and Democrats’ chances of winning the House

“Alaskanians recognized her empty promises and then showed her the door, and she will lose to Dan Sullivan, who fights for Alaskans every day,” Republican National Committee spokesman Nick Bucci said in a statement.

While serving in Washington, Sullivan was involved in military and resource development issues, and was endorsed by then-President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.

“Senator Sullivan has spent years delivering real results for Alaska: historic investments in health care in our state, significant funding for our Coast Guard, help protecting those who cannot protect themselves, and policies that finally unleash Alaska’s energy potential,” his campaign spokesman, Nate Adams, said in an email to The Associated Press.

“His opponent has spent a term and a half in Congress where she did not pass a single bill. Alaskans deserve a senator with a proven track record of getting things done, and the contrast could not be more stark in this race,” Adams said.

Peltula has long touted her ability to work across party lines, such as supporting a large willow oil project on Alaska’s North Slope. She angered some Democrats in 2024 when she refused to endorse then-Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential race won by Trump.

Alaska’s Republican congressional delegation has become accustomed to ignoring partisanship and doing what’s right for the state, such as supporting public media and disaster relief, and they even enlisted the help of former Republican Sen. Ted Stevens, Beltola said.

“It’s time for Alaskans to teach the rest of the country what Alaska First, America First truly looks like,” Beltola said.

Alaska has open primaries and ranked choice voting in general elections. The top four vote-getters in the August primary, regardless of party affiliation, will advance to the general election in November.

Thiessen reported from Anchorage, Alaska.