Mary Peltola Injured in Car Crash as Alaska Senate Race Faces Legal Fight
Democratic Alaska Senate candidate Mary Peltola was injured in a car crash Saturday, according to her campaign. The vehicle transporting Peltola and her family was struck by another driver while she was traveling to the Alaska Federation of Natives’ annual banquet.
Peltola suffered non-life-threatening injuries that required medical attention. Her campaign said events planned in Fairbanks and Bethel for Sunday and Monday would be postponed and rescheduled later in the week while she recovered.
The campaign announced the schedule change through Peltola’s official account:
NBC News reported that Peltola and her family sustained minor injuries in the crash. Campaign manager Cheryl Bruce said the family was recovering and remained in good spirits.
“Mary and her family sustained minor injuries but are in good spirits. Unfortunately, per the advice of medical professionals, Mary’s upcoming events in Fairbanks and Bethel will be rescheduled for later in the week as she takes time to recover,” Peltola campaign manager Cheryl Bruce said in a statement.
The campaign also said Peltola was disappointed that the accident delayed the opening of her Alaska Always Tour. She had planned to use the tour to speak directly with voters about her campaign message and the cost pressures facing working families.
“Mary is disappointed that the accident is delaying the start of her Alaska Always Tour, and she is eager to get back on the campaign trail to speak directly with Alaskans about her plan to take on the rigged system and lower costs for working families,” Bruce added.
Authorities in Anchorage confirmed Sunday that a three-vehicle collision occurred Saturday evening and that those involved sustained “non-life-threatening injuries.”
The accident comes as Alaska’s Senate race is already caught up in a legal fight. The Justice Department sued Friday to block certification of the Senate result if incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses under a specific scenario involving a second candidate with a similar name.
According to the report, a Democrat operative worked to register a man named Daniel J. Sullivan as Dan S. Sullivan, the incumbent senator’s name, while entering him as a Republican primary challenger. The report describes Daniel J. Sullivan as a Democrat backed by a team of Democrats. The alleged strategy was intended to create confusion during Alaska’s August primary.
That effort did not place the decoy candidate on the primary ballot during the summer. However, the report says Daniel J. Sullivan’s name will appear on the ballot in the November general election.
The Justice Department’s lawsuit seeks an order blocking certification if two conditions are met: Senator Sullivan loses, and all votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan instead went to the incumbent, changing the outcome after Alaska’s ranked-choice process played out.
The lawsuit seeks an order to block certification “if: (1) Senator Sullivan does not win the election; and (2) had all votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan been cast instead for Senator Sullivan and Alaska’s rank-choice process played out accordingly, Senator Sullivan would have won the election.”
For Peltola, the immediate issue is recovery and a delayed campaign schedule. For the broader Alaska Senate contest, the car crash is unfolding against a backdrop of ballot litigation and a fight over whether a similar-name candidate could affect the final result.
Peltola Campaign Statement on Upcoming Campaign Stops in Fairbanks and Bethel for the Alaska Always Tour: pic.twitter.com/ZhIzk3Oipk
— Mary Peltola (@MaryPeltola) October 25, 2026