Alaska Senate Endorsement Adds to Cross-Party Push in Tight Races
Former governors and state officials back opponents in Kansas and Texas as experts question if small turnout shifts will decide November outcomes.
By Anthony Foster ·
Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski endorsed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins in Alaska on Tuesday. The move marks the latest high-profile instance of candidates in tight midterm contests soliciting support from the opposing party. Officials and strategists on both sides are emphasizing these alliances in the final days before the November vote.
The trend extends to the Senate races in Kansas and Texas. Former Kansas Republican governors Bill Graves and Mike Hayden announced backing for Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton in September and October, respectively. In Texas, the campaign for James Talarico reported that more than two dozen former GOP officials have signed on. Kel Seliger, a former GOP state senator, joined them this week. Seliger chose Talarico over the Republican candidate, Attorney General Ken Paxton.
“I’ve served with both people,” Seliger said. “James Talarico is not some wild-eyed socialist and and he may believe in a lot of things that Democratic Party believes in that I don’t. But I think he’s going to be honest. And I think he’s going to be frank and direct. I think that the things that he does are going to be what is best for Texas. Not what’s best for Elon Musk.”
Republican officials counter that their candidates also attract cross-party voters. Natalie Baldassarre, the national press secretary for the Republican National Committee, pointed to the race in Michigan between Mike Rogers and Abdul El-Sayed. She also cited the coalition “Democrats for Mike Rogers” as evidence of shifting allegiances in that state.
Joshua Blank, research director for the Texas Politics Project, offered a cautious assessment of these endorsements. He noted that cross-party voting usually affects a small share of the electorate. “We’re not talking about a large group of Republicans crossing party lines to vote for Democrats, or a large group of Democrats possibly crossing party lines to vote for Republicans,” Blank said. “We’re ultimately talking about what are kind of idiosyncratic behaviors they’re going to take place among a small, small share of the electorate.”
Blank added that these shifts could influence outcomes if the margins are narrow. Recent polling indicates that several midterm races have become close, with some statistically tied. Candidates continue to promote their bipartisan appeal as the election season winds down.
