Alaska governor's race

News · Heat 2.6 / 10 · 2 shows · 6m airtime

Alaska's governor's race drew attention on October 20, with Democrat Jonathan Christ Tompkins leading three Republicans in ranked choice voting and Trump endorsing Bernadette Wilson. On October 28, Lisa Murkowski endorsed Tompkins, a shift that puts a prominent Republican behind the Democratic candidate. The discussion frames governors as certifiers of the 2028 presidential result and Alaska as a test of Democrats' rural red-state project. Trump's criticism of ranking ballots may keep the Republican vote split, and the effect of Murkowski's endorsement remains open.

How 2 podcasts covered it

1. The NPR Politics Podcast, 2026-10-20 (10:41 to 12:46)
   Lays out the Alaska governor's race
   Liz Ruskin lays out the Alaska governor's race: Democrat JKT leads while three Republicans split the vote, and Trump's endorsement of Bernadette Wilson plus his dismissal of ranked choice voting may keep the split open. Mara Liasson ties governors to certifying 2028 and to Democrats' rural project.
   New angle: Democrat Jonathan Christ Tompkins leads Alaska's governor's race as three Republicans split the vote, with Trump endorsing Bernadette Wilson.
2. The Bulwark Daily, 2026-10-28 (27:30 to 31:03)
   Adds Murkowski's endorsement in the governor race
   Breaks in on the Alaska governor's race to report Murkowski's endorsement of the Democratic candidate, then works through the House race and Peltola's ranked-choice odds. The endorsement is the new fact; the rest is handicapping built on Alaska's thin polling and its one Democratic senator this century.
   New angle: Lisa Murkowski endorsed Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, the Democratic candidate for Alaska governor.