Former President Trump weighed in on two tight GOP primaries in Alaska and Utah on Monday, making endorsements as the primary season got into full swing.
In Alaska, Trump supported Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom over Nick Begich III. The contested primary brought echoes of the 2022 race between Begich and former Gov. Sarah Palin, which led to Rep. Mary Peltola (D) being elected in a disrupted general election when Begich and Palin ran in the general election.
“Nancy Dahlstrom will be an excellent Congresswoman for the Great People of Alaska, as she was as your lieutenant governor,” Trump said in a statement. Social Posting the Truth.
He also went after Begich, claiming he has “Democratic leanings” and criticizing him for refusing to drop out of the 2022 primary early, which led to Peltola’s victory after an instant runoff using the poll’s ranked-choice system. state.
Alaska, which has one at-large representative in the House, uses a four-primary system in which all candidates compete on the same primary ballot regardless of party affiliation. The top four vote-getters then advance to the general election in November, where voters use a ranked-choice voting system to choose their favorite candidates.
Begich has stated that if he gets fewer votes than Dahlstrom in the primary, then he will drop out, even if he advances to the general election. In doing so, he would clear the way for Dahlstrom to be the de facto Republican nominee in November, allowing the party to rally around her as they attempted to unseat Peltola.
Both parties have put significant effort into the Alaska race, with a slim House majority up for grabs in November.
In Utah, Trump’s endorsement of Rep. Celeste Maloy puts him at odds with Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), who supported Maloy’s opponent, Colby Jenkins. While the seat is safe for Republicans, the primary fight could mark an underlying conflict within the Utah Republican Party.
Maloy won a special election in 2023 to replace former Rep. Chris Stewart (R), his former boss, in Utah’s 2nd District. Lee’s support for her opponent is an unprecedented move, one that Maloy herself denounced as a “Unnecessary risk to Utah delegation.”
Utah endorsement comes few hours later Trump met with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Monday. Johnson publicly supported Maloy in his run.
The House is generally considered up for grabs in November, according to political analysts. The Hill/Decision Desk Headquarters Forecast predicts that Republicans have a 61 percent chance of keeping the lower chamber.
The same forecast gave Peltola a 51 percent chance of keeping his seat and said the winner of the Utah primary will be safely elected.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
