Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy is set to announce his 2028 run for Senate against sitting "Republican" Senator Lisa Murkowski, a vocal opponent of President Donald Trump, according to several sources close to the governor.
🚨 BREAKING: Senator LISA MURKOWSKI will be primary challenged by Alaska Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy in 2028, per Fox.
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 28, 2025
Trump won Alaska by 13 points. Murkowski's seat needs to be taken by someone who isn't always at-odds with MAGA. pic.twitter.com/b8ajaowiP3
The sources confirmed that "He’s not going to quit his term" as governor, as the last person to do so, Sarah Palin, "never recovered."
A source described Governor Dunleavy as someone who “cares deeply about and wants Alaska to succeed,” noting his frustration at the idea that people would choose to live amid the concrete sprawl of Washington rather than the natural beauty of the Arctic. However, the source assured Fox News that he knows that being in Washington, DC, "is the only way to get things done."
"He's not about an ego and pushing himself in front of the cameras. He gets stuff done. … He's not like, ‘Please put me on this committee’ or ‘I have to attend this ball’. He doesn't like those types of things," the source said before adding, "Trump has talked to him before about running and wants him to run." In Alaska, another source told Fox News that it is an uphill battle to get elected Governor as a Republican.
"Gov. Dunleavy has been not only a successful governor, but a pretty strong ally for [President Trump]. So, it's only natural that he'd be hearing that from Alaskans — but also from folks in the broader MAGA movement."
Dunleavy, like Murkowski, has managed to navigate Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system, a framework critics argue tilts in favor of Democrats. The system helped pave the way for Democrat Mary Peltola’s upset victory in the at-large House race, a seat Republicans had held for decades under the late Don Young.
Murkowski, however, “has never faced a challenger like him,” one source emphasized, pointing to Dunleavy’s unusually broad base of support that extends beyond traditional conservative circles.
The last Republican before Dunleavy to secure re-election in Alaska was Governor Jay Hammond in 1978. Sean Parnell, who assumed the governorship following Sarah Palin’s resignation in 2009, remained in office after the 2010 election, though technically without having won a re-election contest himself.
The Alaska Governor was notably present at the recent summit between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 15th.