Vice President JD Vance visited Alaska on Monday to rally support for Republicans before the midterm election. Vance spoke in a hangar at Fairbanks International Airport in front of a crowd that also heard remarks from Rep. Nick Begich, and Sen. Dan Sullivan.
On a night when Sullivan attacked opponent Mary Peltola’s record on energy development, Vance announced a $400 million investment into Alaska’s energy grid, called the Alaska Rail Belt Transmission Project. $150 million of that would come from the federal government.
“The Trump administration will help develop more than 200 miles of new transmission line,” Vance said, “lowering costs and strengthening grid reliability for 75% of the population of this state.”
According to a U.S. Department of Energy release from earlier that day, the project would build a new transmission line between Beluga and Healy, creating a second high-voltage link between Southcentral and Interior Alaska.
Sullivan pivots from Iran War to Alaska energy
Midway through Vance’s speech, a protester in the crowd yelled out that the Iran War must stop. He also referenced President Trump’s disparaging comments about women and a false rumor about JD Vance. The man was dragged out of the event by two staffers.
The war with Iran has rattled the global oil market for over seven months, and Alaska’s already-high fuel prices are putting the cost of energy into sharper focus before the midterm.
Sullivan, who has consistently voted against ending the war, downplayed its significance.
“The Iran conflict is temporary,” he said. “The true forever war is the national Democrats' war against Alaska energy and Alaska jobs.”
He touted the Trump administration’s resource extraction plans for Alaska, saying that the proposed Alaska LNG line development would bring lower costs and more jobs to the state.
Rally speakers pile criticism on Peltola
Sullivan and Vance spent much of their time onstage attacking Sullivan’s Democratic opponent, Mary Peltola.
“If you can't be bothered to vote for your own piece of legislation, then you do not deserve to be a United States senator for the great people of Alaska,” Vance said, referencing Peltola’s “present” vote on an Arctic drilling bill she introduced during her tenure in the House of Representatives.
Sullivan and Vance accused her of wavering on energy development while she was in Congress and pointed to allegations from a recent New York Times article that she repeatedly blew up at her staff.
“These aren't just staffers, these are young Alaskans,” Sullivan said. “These are your sons and daughters who went to D.C. and want to serve their country, and my opponent abused them on a daily basis.”
Begich, who is also running for reelection, also attacked Peltola, but he did not mention his main challenger, Independent candidate Bill Hill.
“We weren't doing too hot two years ago, with Joe Biden and my predecessor, Mary Peltola,” he said. “She didn't get one bill passed into law, she was asleep at the wheel. We don't want to repeat the mistakes of the past.”
The event also included remarks from Gov. Mike Dunleavy and NASA administrator Jared Isaacman.
Trump plans Alaska visit as Senate race tightens
Recent polls show Sullivan and Peltola in a dead heat. President Trump has said he will also campaign in Alaska this month, although no date has been announced.
It’s unclear whether the visits will boost Republicans’ chances in November. Though Trump won the state by 13 percentage points in 2024,recent polling showed that more than half of likely votersdisapprove of his job performance.
Staff at the Oct. 5 rally prevented reporters from leaving a gated press area or speaking to attendees without supervision.