Alaska's supposedly-Republican Senator, Princess Lisa Murkowski, recently spoke with the Alaska Legislature and later, with the local press corps. She is worried, it seems, about Elon Musk trying to derail her 2028 re-election efforts with his "Starlink money." There may indeed be some reason for Musk to get involved; Must Read Alaska's Suzanne Downing, as we have come to expect, has the details.
In a half hour spent with the Capitol press corps this week, Sen. Lisa Murkowski brought up her own electability, which may be in question even for her, a senator who has served since being appointed by her father, Gov. Frank Murkowski, in 2002.
Murkowski brought up election politics in a government building — the Alaska Capitol — straying close to the line of improper use of a government facility for partisan elections.
In remarks that were more animated than her usual pace, Murkowski responded to a reporter’s question about how anyone should believe her when she says things will be OK. She said she has no choice but to try to work with President Donald Trump, and that she expects Elon Musk will try to take her out in the next election cycle.
There are plenty of people in Alaska who would appreciate Elon Musk's help in this. Princess Lisa was awarded that Senate seat like a feudal title when her father was elected Governor in 2002 and appointed her as his Senate replacement. She has managed to hang onto that seat ever since, thanks to a coalition of squishy Republicans and Anchorage and Juneau Democrats. Ranked-choice voting (RCV) helped her win in her last race, as well, but there is already a ballot initiative being worked on to repeal that system in 2026; the last repeal effort failed by about 700 points, despite being outspent 10-1 by outside money. If we can pull that off, the 2028 election will be a traditional, closed-primary, one-voter-one-vote contest. That narrows the odds some.
Elon Musk may have some motivation besides wanting to kick a RINO out of office.
Murkowski has been a supporter of fiber optic broadband solutions for Alaska, and has not championed the small, low-orbit satellites that Starlink has provided for Alaskan customers, a solution that has been cheaper and much-preferred by many in the 49th state.
Although there is a viable alternative, Murkowski has pushed for hundreds of millions of dollars in grants for companies that are part of the Alaska Broadband Initiative, the fiber optic cable solution; these companies also donate to her campaigns for reelection. Starlink has been cut out of that grant process by the fiber optic cable companies winning the awards and the federal government that is picking winners and losers in broadband.
It's always about money, isn't it? It would seem that Starlink would be a superior option for most of Alaska. Remote villages and towns, some of which are not accessible by road, would be difficult to put in conventional broadband; Starlink would seem to be tailor-made for places like, say, Skwentna.
SEE ALSO: Alaska Is Trying Again on Passing a Ranked-Choice Voting Repeal
Why does this matter to people on the Outside?
They say all politics is local, but local politics can have national implications. Alaska is an odd place, politically, but in state-wide elections, it generally goes Republican. Lisa Murkowski has been a thorn in the side of the Trump administration, and there are plenty of people in Alaska (this writer among them) and out who would like to see her lose her seat to someone less squishy, less Democrat-lite.
To Elon Musk, I can only say this: Mr. Musk, please come to the Great Land and talk to some Alaskans. If you can help us send Princess Lisa to the unemployment line, we'd be obliged.
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