Schumer group takes aim at Alaska's Sullivan over high prices
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Screenshot: Ad from Majority Forward
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is doubling down on his Alaska bet with a new ad campaign targeting Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) — in part over the recent spike in gas prices.
Why it matters: Alaska is quickly emerging as a tactical 2026 Senate battlefield as both parties look for opportunities to spend big in a state with a tiny population.
Driving the news: Majority Forward, a 501(c)(4) organization associated with Schumer, is up with a mid-six-figure ad buy hitting Sullivan on high prices for consumer goods, including gasoline, in Alaska.
- "Costs are higher than ever. But Dan Sullivan keeps voting yes with his party leaders, no matter how much it hurts Alaska," the narrator in the 30-second ad says.
- The average price of gasoline is $4.23 in Alaska, up about 70 cents from a month ago, before the U.S. struck Iran, according to AAA.
The intrigue: The ad doesn't mention former Rep. Mary Peltola, the Democratic challenger that Schumer worked hard to recruit.
- For now, Democrats appear more focused on bringing down Sullivan's numbers.
Zoom out: Last month, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee made a $1 million investment to build out the Democratic Party's on-the-ground infrastructure in Alaska.
- Most of the negative Senate ads that have run so far in the state this cycle have been sponsored by Majority Forward.
Zoom in: Republicans are also spending aggressively in the state, with Last Frontier Action, another 501(c)(4), launching a digital ad last month casting Sullivan in a positive light.
- Since both groups are organized as 501(c)(4)s, they can accept anonymous and unlimited contributions.
The bottom line: It's hard to spend that much money in an Alaska Senate race.
- But both parties are testing that proposition.
